Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Independent Review

Robert Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether staff employed by the Oakervee Review secretariat were seconded from (a) his Department, (a) other Government Departments and (c) executive agencies.

Paul Maynard: As set out in the terms of reference for the review, the secretariat was provided by the Department for Transport.

South Western Railway

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost to South Western Railway of the recent strike action.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Any financial impact on South Western Railway is subject to commercial confidentiality and cannot be disclosed.

Motorways: Accidents

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the introduction of Smart motorways on trends in the number of fatal motorway accidents on those motorways.

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will increase the frequency of emergency refuge areas on Smart motorways.

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to finding by Highways England in the report entitled Stationary Vehicle Detection, published in March 2016, what steps he has taken to ensure the safety of users of Smart motorways.

George Freeman: The Secretary of State for Transport announced in October an evidence stocktake to gather the facts on the safety of smart motorways and make recommendations. That work is being undertaken at pace. While I wouldn’t want to pre-judge the results of that work, which we will be publishing very soon, what I can say is that we will continue to prioritise improving safety – making conditions safer for everyone on our roads.

Railways: Disability

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the number and proportion of rail passenger journeys that take place on vehicles exempt from compliance with the Persons of Reduced Mobility Technical Specification for Interoperability.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department for Transport does not hold any information on passenger journeys on vehicles exempt from compliance with the Persons of Reduced Mobility Technical Specification for Interoperability (PRM-TSI). There are no vehicles in scheduled passenger service which are fully exempted from the requirements of the PRM-TSI. There are around 1,300 vehicles (9%) in the national fleet with short term, time-limited dispensations against a range of non-compliances with standards in the PRM-TSI. As these vehicles are upgraded and replaced the number in service diminishes throughout the coming months. Data on the volume of passengers and the frequency of service for vehicles with time-limited dispensations would be a matter for the operators to monitor.

Bus Services: Disability

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish his Department's response to the consultation entitled Bus Services Act 2017: accessible information that closed on 16 September 2018.

George Freeman: In Summer 2018 the Government published a public consultation on proposals to require the provision of accessible on-board information on local bus services throughout Great Britain. We are currently analysing responses to the consultation and expect to announce our next steps regarding the making of Regulations and publication of guidance later in the year.

Railways: Franchises

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the capability of the Operator of Last Resort to manage additional rail franchises.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department is confident that the Operator of Last Resort (OLR) has the capacity to step into Train Operating Companies where necessary and keeps this capacity under review. In addition, the OLR has the capability to expand where needed.

Taxis: Licensing

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to implement the recommendations of the Government's Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing

George Freeman: The Government will continue to engage with the sector on our plans for reforming the regulation of taxis and private hire vehicles including options to introduce new legislation. We are supporting licensing authorities to make use of their extensive existing powers; statutory guidance will shortly be issued to licensing authorities on protecting passengers and updated best practice guidance on other matters will follow later this year.

Cars: Sales

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment the Government has made of the potential merits of bringing forward the ban of the sale of new petrol and diesel cars.

George Freeman: The independent Committee on Climate Change has advised Government to phase out the sale of new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2035 or ideally 2030, bringing forward the current 2040 commitment. In the recent manifesto, Government committed to consulting on the earliest possible date for doing so, while minimising the impact on drivers and businesses.

Railways: Franchises

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how TUPE regulations apply to staff at different grades where a rail franchise has transferred to the Operator of Last Resort.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Where a rail franchise is transferring to the Operator of Last Resort, the Department would follow the TUPE regulations. Consultation with all levels of a Train Operating Company’s staff would take place.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much has been (a) paid to and (b) is due to be paid to under contract provisions (i) Atkins, (ii) BAM Nuttall, (iii) Balfour Beatty, (iv) Rivault Bouyges Travaux Publics, (v) Costain, (vi) EiffageGenie Civil, (vii) Keltbray Group (Holdings) Ltd, (viii) Kier, (ix) Mace, (x) Mott Macdonald, (xi) Ramboil, (xiii) Stantec, (xiv) Sir Robert McAlpine, (xv) Skanska, (xvi) Strabag, (xvii) VINCI plc, (xviii) VolkerWessels UK and (xix) WSP UK for work connected to HS2 in each of the last ten years.

Paul Maynard: a) All contractual payments over £25000 are published online as part of the Government’s transparency agenda, and can be found at https://data.gov.uk/dataset/804be0c6-ae01-4899-bbb9-2317dff1a4f9/spend-over-25-000-in-department-for-transport-and-its-arms-length-bodiesb) Over 2000 organisations have been awarded contracts to deliver HS2 work to date. The Oakervee Review into High Speed 2 is under consideration. Contracts going forward will depend on decision that follow this.

Rail Industry Decarbonisation Taskforce

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to respond to the report of the Rail Industry Decarbonisation Task Force, entitled Final report to the Minister for Rail, published on 20 July 2019.

George Freeman: The Government is ensuring that the railways play their part in delivering our ambitions to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and to reduce the air pollution created by transport. The work of the Rail Industry Decarbonisation Taskforce has informed the Government and rail industry’s approach to decarbonisation over the last year. I accept the recommendations in the taskforce’s final report. In line with those recommendations, Network Rail is developing a Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy, with the Department and industry partners. The Strategy will inform Government decisions in 2020 about the scale and pace of further rail decarbonisation. Alongside this work, the Government announced the Transport Decarbonisation Plan on 15 October last year to bring together a bold and ambitious programme of coordinated action needed to end the UK’s transport emissions by 2050. We are aiming to publish a call for engagement document in due course.

Railways: Capital Investment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on developing market-led proposals for rail infrastructure investment.

Chris Heaton-Harris: We continue to welcome market led proposals and the Market Led Guidance remains live at www.gov.uk/government/publications/rail-market-led-proposals. Where proposals have been received we have engaged with backers and where appropriate supported their engagement with Network Rail and the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline process.

Railways: Bus Services

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of rail replacement services that take place on vehicles that are compliant with the Persons of Reduced Mobility Technical Specification for Interoperability.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government is committed to ensuring that everybody has the same opportunity to use the rail network. According to the data collated by the Office of Rail and Road, for the last 13 rail periods, 38,102 vehicles out of a total of 98,232 (or 38.8%) that were used as rail replacement services were compliant with Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations. I met with industry on 14 January to discuss this issue and tasked it with producing a robust, achievable plan with a series of milestones and delivery points to show how train operators will move to providing fully compliant rail replacement services. I expect to receive a copy of this plan by the Easter recess.

Port Glasgow Station: Access

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding has been allocated from the Public Purse to Port Glasgow Train Station through the Access for All scheme.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The process to select options to make Port Glasgow more accessible is underway. The anticipated cost of the project will be known once a single design has been identified. Sufficient funding is available to deliver an accessible route both into the station, and to and between each platform. All Access for All projects are due to be completed by 2024 at the latest.

Rail Review

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's timeframe is for the publication of the Williams Rail Review.

Chris Heaton-Harris: A White Paper based on the Williams Rail Review’s recommendations will be published in due course.

Railways: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether (a) devolution of powers over rail infrastructure and (b) increased rail infrastructure funding for Wales will be considered in the Williams Rail Review.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Williams Rail Review is considering where further devolution of powers could be in the interests of passengers. Further details will be set out in the forthcoming White Paper.  Decisions around levels of public investment in the railways are outside of the Review’s remit.

A1: Lincolnshire

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timeframe is for the completion of the roadworks and temporary lower speed limit on the A1 south of Grantham;  and what steps he has taken to ensure the timely completion of this work.

George Freeman: The Spittlegate Scheme is being promoted by Lincolnshire County Council and delivered by a private developer under a Section 6 agreement. Highways England is supervising the works, but it is wholly funded and promoted by the County Council. The scheme involves the construction of a new grade separated junction on the A1, referred to as Spittlegate. The works on the A1 will form part of the Grantham Southern Relief Road. The 50mph temporary speed limit is required for safety reasons, both for road users and the workforce during the construction of the works. Highways England worked closely with the Council to ensure that the works were planned in a way to minimise the impact on road users. Further information on the status of the scheme, including its timeframe for delivery, can be found on the County Council’s website: https://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/major-projects/grantham-southern-relief-road

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Parental Pay: Self-employed

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the the level of statutory paternity pay for self-employed (a) mothers and (b) fathers.

Kelly Tolhurst: There have been a number of meeting between BEIS and DWP Ministers and officials to discuss parental pay for the self-employed. Whilst the Government is committed to supporting all working parents, including self-employed parents, we have focussed on policies for employed parents as, generally speaking, they have less autonomy and flexibility over when they work and when they take time off work. The Government is committed to making the UK the best place in the world to work. As announced in the Queen’s Speech, we will be bringing forward legislation to upgrade workers’ rights where it is right for the UK.

Fracking

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans she has to review the moratorium on fracking.

Kwasi Kwarteng: The Government has no plans to review the moratorium on hydraulic fracturing. The Government’s position has been set out in the Written Statement of 4th November 2019 and will be maintained unless compelling new evidence is provided which addresses the concerns around the prediction and management of induced seismicity.

Fracking

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to put into statute the traffic light system on seismicity resulting from hydraulic fracturing.

Kwasi Kwarteng: There are no plans to review the Traffic Light System or to put it into statute.

Fracking

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a levy on shale gas companies to pay for the cost of policing at shale gas sites.

Kwasi Kwarteng: Policing is a matter for the Home Office and the local constabulary. No such assessment has been made.

Local Enterprise Partnerships: East Midlands

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential economic merits of Local Enterprise Partnerships for (a) Hinckley, (b) Bosworth constituency and (c) the East Midlands.

Nadhim Zahawi: Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) play an important role in providing a business voice to inform investment decisions and drive economic growth. The Leicester and Leicestershire LEP has supported Hinckley and Bosworth through a total of £13.1m of Local Growth Funds since 2014. This has included: £9.5m for the MIRA Technology Institute – training 2,500 learners per annum in advanced manufacturing and automotive technologies for the future. £3.6m for the Local Sustainable Transport Fund Rd 2 (Hinckley) - introducing 13 miles of new cycle paths and walking routes, thereby reducing journey times on the highway network. There are 3 LEPs in the East Midlands: Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire (D2N2); Leicester and Leicestershire; and Greater Lincolnshire. Through these LEPs, the Government has invested £539m in projects to create infrastructure, drive job creation, and accelerate skills development.

Fracking

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether she has plans to commission an inquiry into fracking in the next six months; and if she will make a statement.

Kwasi Kwarteng: The Government has no plans to commission an inquiry into hydraulic fracturing in the next six months, or to review the moratorium on hydraulic fracturing. The Government’s position has been set out in the Written Statement of 4th November 2019 and will be maintained unless compelling new evidence is provided.

Post Office

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2020 to Question 3684, on Post Office: Compensation, when the Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Corporate Responsibility last met representatives from the Post Office.

Kelly Tolhurst: Ministers and officials meet with Nick Read, CEO of Post Office Limited’s on a regular basis and meetings with Ministers are included on the regular transparency return.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Written Questions

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Answer of 15 January 2020 to Question 3683, on Post Office: Compensation, when her Department plans to respond.

Kelly Tolhurst: The letter received from the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance is still being considered and a response will be provided in due course.

Post Office

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Oral Contribution of the Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Corporate Responsibility on 21 January 2020, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that cultural change takes place in the Post Office; and if she will make a statement.

Kelly Tolhurst: Postmasters are the backbone of the Post Office, and their branches are vital to communities across the country. That is why Government takes Post Office Limited’s (POL) relationship with its postmasters very seriously. The Post Office's Chair acknowledges the criticism received in the Horizon litigation and has committed to applying the lessons learnt. BEIS Ministers and officials will continue to raise these matters and monitor these issues in their regular engagement with the Post Office. Progress on this work and other issues of mutual interest will also continue to be discussed at the quarterly working group between the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters, Post Office and Government under my chairmanship.

Maritime Enterprise Working Group

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether any Government representative sits on the Maritime Enterprise Working Group.

Nadhim Zahawi: Membership of the Maritime Enterprise Working Group includes representatives from industry, government and academia. The Group reviews and selects representatives on an ad hoc basis as necessary. Government representation includes: Ministry of Defence; Department for International Trade; Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy; and Department for Transport.

Maritime Enterprise Working Group: Finance

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Maritime Enterprise Working Group receives funding from the public purse.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Maritime Enterprise Working Group does not receive continued funding from the public purse. In 2018 the Department for Business, Energy & industrial Strategy contributed £20,000 towards a study of the UK shipbuilding competitiveness and market focus.

UK Research and Innovation: Equality

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if she will undertake an equality impact assessment of the work of UK Research and Innovation.

Chris Skidmore: The Government recognises that equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI), of both people and ideas, is crucial to delivering excellence in research and innovation. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has been developing work on this topic, led by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Executive Chair Jennifer Rubin and an external advisory group that brings together experts from the UK and international bodies. UKRI will be publishing its EDI strategy in February 2020, laying out the challenges and opportunities that the organisation and wider community faces. More information will be available after the anticipated House of Commons Science and Technology Committee inquiry into EDI and the publication of UKRI diversity data in the spring. The department will make decisions on further requirements in due course.

Health: Finance

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what equality impact assessment she has made of health related funding allocated by her Department in respect of the industrial strategy; and if she will undertake equality impact assessments of health related funding allocated by her Department over the next five years.

Nadhim Zahawi: As a public authority, BEIS is required to adhere to the Public Sector Equality Duty in line with the Equality Act. The Department takes its obligations under the Equality Act very seriously, specifically in ensuring that we give due regard to the impacts on people with protected characteristics. We are currently reviewing the assessments made, and are committed to undertaking equality impact analysis of health-related funding allocated by BEIS over the next five years. Health-related projects funded by BEIS and its delivery partners includes funding in the Life Sciences Sector Deals, the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund Healthy Ageing Programme, and the Artificial Intelligence Sector Deal.

Housing: Electricity

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps her Department is taking to help connect off-grid households to the electricity network.

Kwasi Kwarteng: The Department is working with Ofgem and network companies to help improve the network connection process, for example through making advice and information clearer for customers. Ofgem also published a call for evidence, in November 2019, to gain a better understanding of the number, location and characteristics of off-grid households. It is available at https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/call-evidence-households-not-connected-electricity-distribution-network. Ofgem is currently considering the responses.

Fuel Poverty: Easington

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps she is taking to reduce the number of households in fuel poverty in Easington constituency.

Kwasi Kwarteng: Improving energy efficiency is the best long-term solution to tackle fuel poverty and the Energy Company Obligation Scheme provides such support for low income and vulnerable households. Since ECO launched it has delivered energy efficiency measures to more than 2 million households.  ECO has delivered improvements to more than 4000 homes in Easington, representing 11% of households in the area. Tenants living in energy inefficient properties are some of the most at risk of fuel poverty. The Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards now require landlords spend up to £3500 improving their properties to energy efficiency Band E before renting them out. In addition to support to improve energy efficiency the Warm Home Discount provides support to more than 2 million low income and vulnerable households each year through a £140 rebate. Over £2.7 billion has been provided by the scheme over the last nine years. Our 2020 Fuel Poverty Strategy will set out further detail around our future plans to tackle fuel poverty.

Copyright: EU Law

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the oral statement of 16 January, Official Report, column 1141, on the EU Copyright Directive, what her timetable is for (a) reviewing the Directive and (b) announcing the Government’s decision after that review.

Chris Skidmore: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Copyright: EU Law

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the oral statement of 16 January, Official Report, column 1141, on the EU Copyright Directive, what (a) criteria and (b) process the Government plans to use to decide on the adoption of that Directive; and what plans the Government has for stakeholder input to that process.

Chris Skidmore: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Copyright: EU Law

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the oral statement of 16 January 2020, Official Report, column 1141, on the EU Copyright Directive, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the protections in the Directive for jobs and growth in the creative industries.

Chris Skidmore: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Australia: Fires

Christian Matheson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made by the team of specialists from defence, health and fire sent by his Department to Australia to assess what support to provide to emergency responders tackling bushfires.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: As I (Minister Wheeler) set out in my Oral Statement of 9 January, we deployed a team of UK experts to Australia, including a senior member of UK Fire and Rescue Service, a medical specialist in trauma and mental health, and a military liaison officer specialising in crisis response. The team returned to the UK on 16 January having engaged closely with Australian counterparts.Drawing on the team's findings we are working to establish what further UK support would be of most use to the Australian authorities, and ensure that any such contributions are appropriate to Australia's needs. At this stage the Australian government has made no specific requests for assistance.

St Helena: Population

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the population was of St Helena in each of the last 10 years; and what assessment he has made of trends in the level of that population over that period.

Christopher Pincher: The Saint Helena Government's Statistics Office has confirmed that the resident population of St Helena in June each year was:2010 - 39662011 - 39822012 - 40502013 - 42202014 - 43492015 - 44582016 - 45422017 - 43452018 - 45542019 - 4346The population increased during the construction of St Helena Airport (particularly between 2013 and 2016) but there was a slight fall in number before the airport opened for commercial flights in October 2017. In 2018 the resident population increased and subsequently fell in 2019 to around the same level as it was in 2014.

Kashmir: Politics and Government

Paul Bristow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Indian counterpart on the decision of the Government of India on 5 August 2019 to repeal Articles 370 and 35a of the Indian Constitution.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: We are in regular contact with the Indian Government regarding the situation in Kashmir. Following the revocation of Articles 370 and 35a, the Foreign Secretary raised our concerns with his counterpart, Dr Jaishankar. Most recently,Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon discussed the situation in Kashmir with the Indian Minister of State for External and Parliamentary Affairs and, separately, the Indian High Commissioner to the UK. We welcome reports that some restrictions have been relaxed, and that some of those previously detained have been released. However, we remain concerned at the ongoing detentions and continued restrictions in some areas and call for these to be lifted as soon as possible. We also welcome India’s commitment to economic and social development in India-administered Kashmir, and have asked the Indian Government for more detail on how their plans will be realised.

Nigeria: Christianity

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of threats faced by Christian communities in Nigeria; and what assistance his Department is providing to those communities.

Andrew Stephenson: Increasing insecurity in Nigeria is affecting communities of all faiths. Intercommunal violence across multiple states has had a devastating impact on both Christian and Muslim communities. In North East Nigeria, Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa seek to undermine the Nigerian constitutional right to freedom of religion by deliberately attacking both Christian and Muslim communities and religious leaders.We regularly raise our concerns about increasing levels of violence with the Nigerian Government, including most recently by the Prime Minister during his meeting with President Buhari at the UK-Africa Investment Summit on 20 January. We also engage closely with the federal government, state government, international partners and the National Economic Council to help address the root causes of intercommunal violence and to maintain the right to freedom of religion. We continue to push for solutions that meets the needs of all communities affected. Over five years (2018-2022), the UK is providing £300 million of humanitarian support to communities in North East Nigeria.

Sudan: Lions

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has offered any assistance to Sudanese authorities with respect to the five African lions in Khartoum’s Al-Qureshi park.

Andrew Stephenson: ​We are aware of press reports regarding the lions in Khartoum’s Al-Qureshi park and pleased that a local community committee has recently provided food and assistance. We urge the Sudanese authorities to ensure the continued welfare of the animals.

India: Nationality

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2020 to Question 963 on India: Nationality, if he will make an estimate of how many Muslims were killed in connection with protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 in Uttar Pradesh state in the Republic of India since 11 December 2019.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The British Government has not made an estimate of Muslims killed in protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Uttar Pradesh since 11 December 2019. Any individual killed in a peaceful protest is one too many, and we encourage all states to ensure their domestic laws are enforced in line with international standards​

Bahrain: Human Rights

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Bahrain.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We published our assessment of the human rights situation in Bahrain in the annual Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights Report, most recently in June 2019.

Bahrain: Political Prisoners

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the UN expert report to the Bahraini Government on the cases of Nabeel Rajab, Hajer Mansoor and Medina Ali, what assessment he has made as to whether the Bahraini Government discriminates against political prisoners when granting alternative sentences; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of study visits for Bahraini delegations to the UK on alternative sentencing as part of the technical assistance provided by the Government to its Bahraini counterparts.

Dr Andrew Murrison: ​Bahrain has brought in new legislation related to alternative sentencing and has started to implement provisions under this new legal framework. British expertise has supported this process, and we welcome this positive move in reforming the judicial system. There are clear provisions in place regarding eligibility of detainees for alternative sentencing. We continue to follow the cases of Nabeel Rajab and Hajer Mansoor. Medina Ali received a Royal pardon in December 2019.

Bahrain: Political Prisoners

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the joint statement published on 8 October 2019 by Human Rights Watch and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, entitled Bahrain: Prisoners Denied Medical Care, what steps he has taken to help ensure that Hassan Mushaima and Dr Abdujalil al-Singace (a) have access to medical treatment in accordance with international human rights standards and (b) are released from prison.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We continue to monitor the cases of Hassan Mushaima and Abduljalil al-Singace. We have raised these cases at senior levels with the Bahraini Government. The Government of Bahrain has been clear in public statements that access to medical care, including dental, for those in detention is guaranteed by the Constitution of Bahrain.We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to raise them with the appropriate Bahraini human rights oversight body. We continue to encourage the oversight bodies in Bahrain to carry out thorough and swift investigations into any such claims.

British Overseas Territories: Politics and Government

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has received representations on the Overseas Territories (a) negotiating a devolution settlement similar to those for devolved nations of the UK and (b) representation in the UK Parliament; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Pincher: Each of the United Kingdom's 14 Overseas Territories has its own unique constitution setting out the responsibilities of the local government and the Government of the United Kingdom. The requests for constitutional reform have been driven by the people of each inhabited Territory. In the last year the Government of the United Kingdom has held formal negotiations on constitutional reform with the Cayman Islands and Anguilla. None of the Overseas Territories have requested a constitutional relationship akin to the devolution settlements within the United Kingdom.

British Overseas Territories: Politics and Government

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the future governance of the Overseas Territories; what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) a devolution settlement for those territories similar to those for devolved nations of the UK and (b) representation for those territories in the UK Parliament.

Christopher Pincher: Each of the United Kingdom's 14 Overseas Territories has its own unique constitution setting out the responsibilities of the local government and the Government of the United Kingdom. The requests for constitutional reform have been driven by the people of each inhabited Territory. In the last year the Government has held formal negotiations on constitutional reform with the Cayman Islands and Anguilla. None of the Overseas Territories have requested a constitutional relationship akin to the devolution settlements within the United Kingdom.

British Overseas Territories: Politics and Government

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the future governance of the Overseas Territories and the potential merits of (a) a devolution settlement for those territories similar to those for devolved nations of the UK and (b) representation for those territories in the UK Parliament.

Christopher Pincher: ​Each of the United Kingdom's 14 Overseas Territories has its own unique constitution setting out the responsibilities of the local government and the Government of the United Kingdom. The requests for constitutional reform have been driven by the people of each inhabited Territory. In the last year the Government has held formal negotiations on constitutional reform with the Cayman Islands and Anguilla. None of the Overseas Territories have requested a constitutional relationship akin to the devolution settlements within the United Kingdom.

British Overseas Territories: Politics and Government

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Overseas Territories on the future governance of those territories and the potential merits of (a) a devolution settlement for those territories similar to those for devolved nations of the UK and (b) representation for those territories in the UK Parliament.

Christopher Pincher: ​Each of the United Kingdom's 14 Overseas Territories has its own unique constitution setting out the responsibilities of the local government and the Government of the United Kingdom. The requests for constitutional reform have been driven by the people of each inhabited Territory. In the last year the Government has held formal negotiations on constitutional reform with the Cayman Islands and Anguilla. None of the Overseas Territories have requested a constitutional relationship akin to the devolution settlements within the United Kingdom.

Colombia: Peace Negotiations

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the 8 January 2020 UN Security Council Mission to Colombia report on the state of the Colombian peace process; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Pincher: The United Kingdom is proud to act as penholder for the Colombian peace process in the UN Security Council, and supports the important work the UN Verification Mission does to monitor the progress made following the 2016 agreement. We welcomed the Special Representative's latest report to the Security Council, and agreed with his assessment of the situation. We were glad to see President Duque's announcement that he would like the UN Mission to stay in Colombia until at least 2022, and commend the Colombian Government on the successes it has achieved so far.As we mentioned in the UN Security Council session on 13 January following the Special Representative's report, the United Kingdom remains particularly concerned about the persistent level of violence towards human rights defenders, community leaders and former FARC combatants. We have called on the Colombian Government to prioritise the tackling of this violence and to improve security conditions around the country, as well as accelerating implementation of reintegration programmes for former fighters. The United Kingdom is also committed to continuing its own programming to support the Government's efforts and mitigate risks to communities.

Colombia: Violence

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his Colombian counterpart on the violence against (a) social activists and (b) FARC former combatants in that country; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Pincher: ​The United Kingdom shares the concerns of the Colombian Government regarding the ongoing violence in Colombia as organised armed groups fight for control of illicit economies. We have been vocal in expressing our concern about the persistent high levels of violence and threats towards social activists, former FARC combatants and others, and the impact this has on the future of peace. We regularly raise these issues with the Colombian Government and in multilateral fora. Most recently, our Permanent Representative to the United Nations spoke on this issue at the UN Security Council on 13 January. Our Embassy regularly raises concerns about specific communities with the relevant state actors in Colombia.We remain steadfast in our support of the Colombian authorities as they work towards sustainable peace, and will continue to work closely with the Colombian Government and civil society on the peace process and related matters.

Colombia: Peace Negotiations

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Colombian counterpart on the safety and security of the 9,000 FARC members living outside of official reincorporation zones in Colombia.

Christopher Pincher: The United Kingdom welcomes the Colombian Government's longstanding commitment to assisting former guerrilla fighters transition to civilian life following the peace agreement of 2016. We have committed almost £45 million over 5 years through the United Kingdom conflict Stability and Security Fund for Colombia to support development across conflict-affected regions. We have done this through programmes designed to build state capacity to ensure the safety of former fighters and of other vulnerable individuals and groups, including outside of official reincorporation zones.Our Embassy regularly raises concerns about specific communities with the relevant state actors in Colombia.We also raised our concern about this issue at the United Nations Security Council session on Colombia on 13 January, where we called on the Colombian government to accelerate its reintegration programmes for former combatants. We will continue to work closely with the Colombian government and civil society on the peace process and related matters.

Iran: Detainees

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure that British citizens illegally imprisoned in Iran have (a) adequate food and (b) warm clothes.

Andrew Stephenson: ​We regularly request consular access to all our dual-national prisoners to ensure that they are treated in accordance with international standards and that their welfare needs are met. However, Iran considers these individuals to be Iranians under Iranian law and has not granted the British Government access. Although there is no international legal obligation to recognise dual nationality, we consider our dual-national prisoners to be British and will continue to request access to them.

Iran: Detainees

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many times (a) he and (b) his Department have made representations to the Government of Iran on the inadequacy of provisions for British citizens illegally imprisoned in that country in the last 12 months.

Andrew Stephenson: The Foreign Secretary raised his concerns over dual nationals most recently in his call with Foreign Minister Zarif on 9 January. We regularly request consular access to our dual-national prisoners to ensure that they are treated in accordance with international standards and that their welfare needs are met. We will continue to request access to them, however Iran considers these individuals to be Iranians under Iranian law and has not granted the British Government access. The Prime Minister also raised his concerns in a recent telephone call with President Rouhani.

Iran: British Nationals Abroad

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to take forward with Iran the policy of diplomatic protection invoked in the case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe following the increased risk of arbitrary detention and abuse of UK citizens and embassy staff in that country.

Andrew Stephenson: ​Exercising diplomatic protection in Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe's case has formally raised her case to a state-to-state issue. We continue to lobby the Iranian Government at the most senior levels for Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe's unconditional release so she can be reunited with her family.

Iran: Sanctions

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of using Magnitsky sanctions on people in Iran who have arbitrarily detaining British citizens; and what the threshold is for commencing such an assessment.

Andrew Stephenson: ​Our priority remains finding diplomatic solutions to de-escalate tensions. It would be inappropriate to speculate on designations under the Global Human Rights ('Magnitsky' style) sanctions regime, particularly as we are still developing the secondary legislation which will bring it into force. The IRGC as a whole remains subject to EU and US sanctions; a large number of associated individuals and entities are also designated. The UK will continue to implement the EU sanctions in the Implementation Period.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the status of the peace process in Yemen.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Chile: Demonstrations

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the Chilean Government’s response to protests in that country.

Christopher Pincher: The British Government noted with concern the recent violence in Chile and welcomed its decline. We also welcome the Chilean Government's public assurances, throughout the protests, that allegations of human rights abuses will be investigated fully, and that, if appropriate, perpetrators will be prosecuted. Our Embassy in Santiago is in contact with the Chilean authorities, and we will continue to monitor the situation closely.

Chile: Demonstrations

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Chilean counterpart on engaging in peaceful dialogue with protestors.

Christopher Pincher: The British Government is concerned by events that have occurred in Chile. Our Ambassador in Chile has talked with representatives of the Chilean Government about the protests and has expressed concern about the violence and reports of human rights abuses. A characteristic of the protests in Chile is that they have no leadership with whom the Government can engage. Nevertheless, the demands of the protesters have been clear and we welcome the Government's adoption of policies to address them.

Iran: Prisoners

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Government of Iran on the imprisonment of (a) Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani and (b) other Christian prisoners of conscience.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Attorney General

European Convention on Human Rights

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Attorney General, whether the UK will remain a party to the European Convention on Human Rights after the UK leaves the EU.

Mr Geoffrey Cox: The UK will remain party to the ECHR after it has left the EU. The UK has strong human rights protections within a comprehensive and well-established constitutional and legal system and the decision to leave the EU does not change this.

European Court of Justice: Judgements

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Attorney General, whether the provisions in the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill will enable the UK to determine the circumstances in which lower courts will have regard to rulings of the European Court of Justice in relation to retained EU case law.

Mr Geoffrey Cox: Section 26 of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 provides a power for Ministers to make regulations to determine which Courts may depart from judgments handed down by the Court of Justice of the European Union before the end of the implementation period and in what circumstances. This will ensure UK courts are not inappropriately bound by retained EU case law after the UK has left the EU.

Hate Crime: Social Media

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Attorney General, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the CPS has adequate resources to tackle hate crime on social media.

Michael Ellis: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is committed to robustly prosecuting online hate crime cases, including offline offences with online elements. The CPS works closely with partners across Government under the hate crime action plan. On 12 August 2019, the Prime Minister announced an investment of an additional £85 million for the CPS. The work carried out by the CPS is changing, and this new funding will provide the increased capacity to enable the CPS to respond effectively to challenging trends, such as an increase in online crime and the volume of digital evidence.

Prosecutions

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Attorney General, how many cases in which the CPS has made a decision to charge are waiting to be (a) completed and (b) resolved.

Michael Ellis: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of the number of defendants whose prosecution is carried forward or waiting to be completed at the end of each year, representing a snapshot in time. The table below shows the number of these, in cases where the CPS had made a decision to charge.2018-2019Total Defendants Carried Forward53,631Data Source: CPS Case Management Information System  Records are also held showing the number of finalised (or resolved) prosecution outcomes (by defendant) where the CPS authorised a charge. The table below provides the volumes of these.2018-2019Total Finalised Prosecution Outcomes183,917Data Source: CPS Case Management Information System

Department of Health and Social Care

Hormone Replacement Therapy

Caroline Nokes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of supplies of the HRT drug Evorel Conti.

Jo Churchill: We are aware that supplies of Evorel Conti patches became unavailable at the end of November 2019 due to the divestment of the product to another company. The Evorel hormone replacement therapy (HRT) patch range has been divested to the company Theramex UK Limited.The Department has been in contact with Theramex, who anticipates that supplies will become available from February 2020. We are working closely with this company to expedite the resupply date of the Evorel patch range including Evorel Conti.We have been working closely with all suppliers of HRT preparations to maintain overall supply to patients. We have shared relevant information about the supply situation and availability of HRT products with the National Health Service on a regular basis. Patients affected are advised to discuss alternative treatment options with their clinician.

Hospitals: Parking

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timetable is for his Department's consultation on eligibility criteria for free hospital parking.

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to exempt people undergoing chemotherapy from hospital parking charges.

Edward Argar: The Department is working with the National Health Service to introduce changes to NHS hospital car parking in England from April 2020.This will include free parking for frequent outpatient attenders.

Mental Health Services: Prisons and Youth Custody

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much NHS England has spent on commissioning mental health services to treat patients in (a) youth offender institutes, (b) secure children’s homes and (c) prisons in each year for which information is available.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Compulsorily Detained Psychiatric Patients: Death

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people who were detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 died in each year since 2010.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Psychiatric Hospitals: Standards

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to Answer of 16 January 2020 to Question 2462 on Psychiatric Hospitals: Standards, how many mental health hospitals rated as (a) good and (b) outstanding by the CQC are (i) independent mental health hospitals and (ii) NHS hospitals.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to help reduce the number of women having more than one abortion.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Abortion: Gender Selection

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that gender-selective abortions are not carried out in UK.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cancer

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of (a) prostate cancer among men and (b) breast cancer among women.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

HIV Infection: Drugs

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with health professionals to ensure that gay and bisexual men in (a) the North West, (b) Liverpool City Region, (c) Wirral and (d) Wallasey have access to places on the PrEP Impact Trial.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Diabetes: Medical Equipment

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to extend the issuing of continuous glucose monitoring systems to people who have diabetes.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Buildings

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many buildings across the National Health Service estate currently have Aluminium Composite Material cladding.

Edward Argar: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of linear accelerator radiotherapy machines in use at NHS Trusts that are past the recommended 10 year lifespan; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of upgrading the NHS stock of Linear Accelerator radiotherapy machines to ensure that no machine is used beyond its recommended 10-year lifespan; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an estimate of the potential savings to the public purse from purchasing Linear Accelerator radiotherapy machines on a planned and rolling basis; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Radiotherapy

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients travel for more than 45 minutes a day to access radiotherapy treatment; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Malnutrition

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many admissions there have been for malnutrition in England in the latest period for which figures are available, by age group (a) 0 to 5 years, (b) 5 to 10 years, (c) 10 to 16 years and (d) 16 years plus.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Deficiency Diseases

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many hospital admissions there have been for (a) scurvy, (b) rickets and (c) vitamin D deficiency in each of the last three years.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Negligence

Sir Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to remove the requirement to fund compensation in claims of clinical negligence on the basis it will be used for private, not NHS care.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Care Homes

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of trends in the number of people moved from home care into residential care since 2015.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Speech and Language Therapy: Children

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2020 to Question 3669, what the average waiting time was from (a) referral to first assessment and (b) first assessment to commencement of treatment for children to receive speech and language therapy by local authority area in each of the last five years.

Caroline Dinenage: The information is not held in the format requested.

Social Services: North West

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of unmet demand for adult social care in each of the last 10 years in (a) the North West, (b) Liverpool city region, (c) Wirral and (d) Wallasey.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Agency Workers

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much the NHS spent on (a) agency staff, (b) agency nurses and (c) locum doctors in each of the last five years.

Edward Argar: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust: Repairs and Maintenance

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding is available to Nottingham University Hospitals Trust to tackle its maintenance backlog.

Edward Argar: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Re-employment

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) psychiatrists and (b) trained mental health nurses have rejoined the NHS in each of the last two years.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department does not hold the information requested.

Children: Death

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which NHS hospital trusts do not currently have a designated doctor for child deaths in post.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Health Services: Children in Care

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which hospital trusts do not have a designated doctor for looked-after children.

Jo Churchill: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Health: Prisoners

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the findings on healthcare provision of the report by Inquest, Deaths in prison, published 22 January 2019, if he will take steps to improve the (a) physical and (b) mental wellbeing of prisoners.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Disability Aids

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding is available for people who need access to augmentative and alternative communication devices.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Disability Aids

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of people who have accessed augmentative and alternative communication devices funded from the public purse in each of the last five financial years.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Staff

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the NHS People Plan.

Edward Argar: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for International Development

Africa: Health Services

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to support the delivery of health improvements in Africa.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK is a leading global health actor, supporting improved health outcomes across Africa. We work in partnership with African states, civil society and multilaterals to end preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies and children by 2030. Averting preventable deaths and supporting Universal Health Coverage is the overarching goal of all UK health investments. Our priorities include: strengthening health systems; tackling specific health challenges (such as malnutrition, polio and neglected tropical diseases); leading efforts towards the manifesto commitment of ending the malaria epidemic; and supporting global health security. The UK is the world’s second largest bilateral donor on family planning - the Women’s Integrated Sexual Health programme alone works to prevent 24,000 maternal deaths, including in 24 African countries; the UK is also the second largest government funder of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. In 2018 the Global Fund, which disbursed 72% of its funding in sub-Saharan Africa, helped provide 18.9 million people with antiretroviral therapy for HIV; test and treat 5.3 million people for TB; and distribute 131 million mosquito nets to protect families from malaria. Our £1.44 billion support to Gavi (2016-2020) will vaccinate an additional 76 million children and save 1.4 million lives in 68 of the world’s poorest countries.

Developing Countries: Education

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to (a) ensure children with disabilities progress under the 12 years’ quality education for all girls by 2030 policy and (b) monitor the progress of those children.

Andrew Stephenson: Through DFID’s 2018 education policy and disability strategy, the UK committed to show leadership in disability inclusion.We are making good progress. We support the ‘Inclusive Education Initiative’ with the World Bank and Government of Norway to get children with disabilities into school and learning. Our Disability Inclusive Development programme tests what works at scale in education for children with disabilities. UK Aid supports the development and publication of the annual Global Education Monitoring report. This year’s focus is inclusive education.DFID is also scaling up support to children with disabilities through our country education programmes. In Rwanda, UK Aid will support inclusion training of one teacher in every school, and in Ethiopia, we supported establishment of inclusive education resource centres to support teachers with inclusive practice.We are monitoring our progress through tracking of DFID’s Disability Strategy and Education Policy.

UK-Africa Investment Summit

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the Africa-UK Investment Summit will be an annual event.

Andrew Stephenson: This Summit achieved its objectives of laying the foundations for a new stronger relationship between the UK and Africa based on mutually beneficial trade and investment, which will deliver for all our people. Following our departure from the European Union, the Government will build further on these foundations, in a range of ways, to realise the UK’s ambition to be the investment partner of choice for Africa, to create hundreds of thousands of jobs and to ensure the mutual prosperity of all our nations. I have placed a copy of the UK Government’s statement on the Summit in the Library of the House. The statement is also available on gov.uk.

UK-Africa Investment Summit

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the outcomes of the UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020 were; and what plans he has to support to grassroots partnerships developed as a result of that summit.

Andrew Stephenson: The Summit laid the foundations for new partnerships between the UK and African nations based on trade, investment, shared values and mutual interest. Billions of pounds of new commercial deals were announced highlighting the strength of the UK’s offer and existing relationship with Africa.The UK also announced new initiatives and funding which will: strengthen the joint trading relationship, support African countries in their ambition to transform their economies, launch a major new partnership with the city of London, turbo-charge infrastructure financing, and enable Africa’s clean energy potential. For example, the Government announced it will be scaling up its Financial Sector Deepening Network programme by a further £320mn. This programme is aimed at strengthening financial systems across Africa to make them more attractive to international investors by providing support to countries to meet global standards and by deepening and driving cross-border banking across the continent.I have placed a copy of the UK Government’s statement on the Summit in the Library of the House. The statement is also available on gov.uk.

Developing Countries: Genito-urinary Medicine

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to ensure that young women in developing countries who (a) unmarried and (b) are mothers can access contraceptive and sexual and reproductive health and rights services.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to ensure (a) indigenous women and (b) other minority groups in developing countries can access contraceptive and sexual and reproductive health and rights services.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to his Department's press release entitled, UK will step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies and children in the developing world by 2030 published on 19 October 2019, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that adolescent girls with disabilities can access sexual and reproductive health services.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Secretary of State recently announced that the UK would step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children by 2030. Universal health coverage, including access to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), is central to these efforts.Our health and SRHR programmes aim to understand and overcome the barriers for excluded groups, to ensure that the poorest and most vulnerable within society, including those with disabilities, are able to access services. All our SRHR programmes target adolescent girls. We also work to address the needs of ethnic groups in particular countries.At the UN General Assembly in 2019, the Secretary of State for International Development announce funding of £600 million over 2020-2025 that will provide millions more women and girls with access to family planning.The Women’s Integrated Sexual Health reproductive health programme uses innovative ways to identify and reach the poorest and most marginalised adolescent girls and women with essential services across 27 countries. Our support to the Robert Carr Fund, Amplify Change and the Safe Abortion Action Fund all support grassroots organisations to campaign for and promote access to the most marginalised populations’ sexual and reproductive health services and rights.

Developing Countries: Terminal Illnesses

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to his Department's press release entitled, UK will step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies and children in the developing world by 2030 published on 19 October 2019, what steps his Department is taking to increase the quality of life for (a) children, (b) new-borns and (c) women living with life-threatening illness where death is not preventable.

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to his Department's press release entitled, UK will step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies and children in the developing world by 2030 published on 19 October 2019, what plans he has to support country-led plans to (a) provide skilled care at birth, (b) provide emergency obstetric care and (c) ensure availability of (i) medicines, (ii)  commodities and (iii) equipment; and what plans he has to support the availability of misoprostol to prevent and treat postpartum haemorrhage and medical abortion.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Secretary of State recently announced that the UK would step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children by 2030. Core to the UK's Preventable Deaths agenda, is how we can support low income countries to scale up quality health services. This includes the development of national maternal health policies, support for the delivery of services and work to strengthen health systems, the provision of skilled care at birth, emergency obstetric care, and improving access and quality of medicines. We invest at both the country level and through global programmes. An example is our recent £600m commitment to scale up access to a range of existing and new sexual and reproductive health supplies, which has the potential to expand access to misoprostol.We recognise that not all deaths are preventable. We support countries in their development of national policies and service provision for those with ongoing illnesses, with focus on quality of care and access to medicines.

Developing Countries: Genito-urinary Medicine

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to his Department's press release entitled, UK will step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies and children in the developing world by 2030 published on 19 October 2019, what his policy is on the (a) integration of cervical cancer prevention and treatment services including HPV vaccination and screening to sexual and reproductive health services and (b) the WHO call to eliminate cervical cancer by May 2020.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK is a leading player in global health and is committed to stepping up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborn babies and children in the developing world by 2030.UK aid provides support to strengthen health systems in the world’s poorest countries, including provision of sexual reproductive health services and rights. Where possible an integrated package of sexual and reproductive health services are delivered, including the introduction of certain cervical cancer screening, prevention and treatments in some contexts.We are the largest donor to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which supports HPV vaccination programmes in developing countries. Through Gavi support, 30 developing countries have taken their first steps toward HPV roll out, with the aim of vaccinating 40 million girls by 2020. The UK will also host the Gavi Replenishment Conference on 3-4 June 2020.The UK supports the recently published WHO ‘Global strategy towards eliminating cervical cancer as a public health problem’, and the associated goals for the period 2020 to 2030.

UK-Africa Investment Summit

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding his Department has allocated to the UK-Africa Investment Summit; and whether that funding was classified as Overseas Development Assistance.

Andrew Stephenson: As with all such Government events, the full costing will be available in due course. 2020 UK ODA spend, including for this Summit, will be reported in Statistics on International Development, published by DFID in Autumn 2021.

Armed Conflict: Sexual Offences

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what his policy is on contributing to the Global Survivors Fund to support survivors of conflict-related sexual violence.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK welcomes this global initiative from Nobel Laureates Dr Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad to support survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and plans to announce a contribution to the International Fund in due course. The FCO leads on this as part of the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative. DFID and FCO continue to work closely together to ensure a survivor-centred approach to end conflict-related sexual violence.Preventing and responding to all forms of violence against women and girls, including conflict-related sexual violence, is a priority for the Department for International Development. DFID provides substantial, long-term support to survivors of violence through the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women (£21 million, 2014-2020). In November 2019, DFID announced a new £67.5 million programme to prevent violence against women and girls – the largest investment by any single government donor to prevent such violence, including conflict-related sexual violence.

Developing Countries: Nutrition

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether it is his Department's policy to make a financial commitment at the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth 2020 summit.

Dr Andrew Murrison: DFID officials are working closely with the Government of Japan to prepare for the 2020 Nutrition for Growth Summit. This will be an important opportunity to secure new commitments to nutrition, to set the world on a better track to achieve the Global Goals and to help achieve our ambition of ending preventable deaths by 2030.We are in the process of identifying the most appropriate and impactful commitment the UK Government can make as part of the 2020 Summit.

Developing Countries: Food Supply and Malnutrition

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people at risk of (a) malnutrition and (b) food scarcity as a result of climate change.

Andrew Stephenson: Climate change is expected to increase the risk of malnutrition and hunger by increasing the frequency of extreme weather events and disease outbreaks. It will also reduce the quality, quantity and affordability of nutritious diets.Countries that do not plan effectively for climate adaption are likely to see a reversal of previous improvements in nutrition and food security. Climate modelling has estimated that 2°C warming will result in there being an additional 540 to 590 million undernourished people by 2050. By 2050 there will also be an estimated 10 million more children who will be undernourished as a result of climate change.

Infant Foods: Marketing

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking with his international counterparts to help enforce of the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes.

Dr Andrew Murrison: DFID supports implementation of the International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes in the countries where we work. Evidence shows that inappropriate marketing of breast milk substitutes undermines breastfeeding and that infants in developing countries who are not breastfed are more likely to get sick and to die.We are concerned that manufacturers of breast milk substitutes continue to contravene the Code. Our position is not to partner with those companies that are uncompliant with the Code.We provide technical assistance to partner governments to develop and strengthen their own national nutrition policies. Breastfeeding support and promotion are also components of our health and nutrition programmes in countries such as Bangladesh and Nigeria.

Developing Countries: Nutrition

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to include nutrition objectives in his Department’s investments in (a) health, (b) social protection, (c) agriculture and (d) climate change adaptation.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK is committed to addressing malnutrition as part of our pledge to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children by 2030.High-impact nutrition services are an essential part of health services and coverage. We are integrating nutrition into our health programmes in countries such as the DRC and Somalia and will continue with this approach.People also need to have access nutritious and sustainable diets. We are supporting the roll out of climate-resilient crops and helping to ensure nutritious foods – including fruits and vegetables – are more affordable. We will continue to look for ways to maximise the impact of our investments in areas such as agriculture, social protection and climate adaptation on people’s health and nutrition.

Developing Countries: Nutrition

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to incorporate the OECD policy marker for nutrition into his Department’s reporting systems.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK worked with other Governments to support the adoption of the nutrition policy marker by the OECD. We also led efforts to develop guidance on how it should be applied. The new policy marker will significantly improve our ability to track aid spending on nutrition. We are taking steps to ensure we use this policy marker to best effect in our reporting systems.

Department for Education

Pre-school Education: Finance

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he has plans to allocate additional funding for the provision of early years childcare.

Nick Gibb: The Government plans to spend £3.6 billion to support early education in the financial year 2020-21. Details of how this funding is distributed across local authorities was published in December 2019 and can be found here:https://skillsfunding.service.gov.uk/single-funding-statement/latest/dedicated-schools-grant/download-funding/2020-to-2021.The funding allocations for local authorities are based on actual take-up of the entitlement hours. Therefore, allocations for 2020-21 will be updated, first in summer 2020 using updated data from the January 2020 schools and early years censuses, and then in summer 2021 using January 2021 census data for the final allocation.

Teachers: Vacancies

Mohammad Yasin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps he has taken to tackle teacher shortages.

Nick Gibb: There are over 453,000 teachers in our schools – 12,000 more than in 2010 – and postgraduate recruitment to teacher training is at its highest level since 2010-11. The Government recognises that we need to do more to attract and retain teachers, particularly as the economy improves, pupil numbers grow and the demand for talented graduates increases.Last year, the Department launched the first ever integrated strategy to recruit and retain more teachers. This included the biggest teaching reform in a generation: the Early Career Framework (ECF). The ECF will provide new teachers with the solid foundations for a successful career in teaching, backed by £130 million a year in funding when fully rolled out in 2021.The strategy also set out priorities to make it easier for great people to join the profession, develop clearer career pathways for classroom teachers, and help school leaders establish more supportive school cultures to reduce teacher workload.The Department has committed to raising starting salaries for new teachers to £30,000 by 2022-23, putting teaching on a par with other top graduate professions. We are also offering generous bursaries of up to £26,000 during training in key secondary subjects such as mathematics, physics and modern foreign languages. Additionally, physics, mathematics, languages and chemistry trainees starting initial teacher training in 2020-21 will receive three early-career payments totalling £6,000 spread across years two, three and four of teaching. This total may increase to £9,000 if the trainees are teaching in local authority areas the Department has identified as having high need for teachers, as determined by our published data.

Secondary Education: Class Sizes

Mohammad Yasin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to reduce the pupils per teacher ratio in secondary schools.

Nick Gibb: As the context of individual schools is different, there are varying approaches to effective staff deployment. It is for school leaders to determine how best to deploy their teachers and the Government trusts them to make the right staffing decisions for their schools. The Department is committed to supporting schools to achieve excellent outcomes for pupils with a wide range of different staffing models.The Department is also working to ensure school leaders can access the advice, tools and data they need to make the best use of school resources and plan their workforce deployment effectively and efficiently. We have published practical guidance and tools on school resource management, including the School Workforce Planning Guidance[1], which encourages school leaders to plan their workforce together with the curriculum and finances over three to five years.The Department is taking steps to keep teachers in the classroom so that the teaching workforce is as strong as possible. In January 2019, we launched the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy, which set out four priorities to attract and retain teachers in the profession. We will transform support for early career teachers through the Early Career Framework (ECF), which will underpin a two-year package of structured training and support for early career teachers, backed by £130 million a year in funding when fully rolled out in 2021.The other key priorities set out in the strategy are around making it easier to train to become a teacher, supporting schools to establish more supportive school cultures, and developing coherent career pathways for those teachers who wish to stay and excel in the classroom.In addition, the Department plans to raise starting salaries for new teachers to £30,000 by 2022-23, aligning teaching with other top graduate professions. We have introduced financial incentives including bursaries of up to £26,000 for mathematics, physics and modern foreign languages trainees, as well as early career payments for new chemistry, languages, mathematics and physics trainees in 2020-21, in order to encourage good trainees to join and remain in the profession. [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-workforce-planning

Pupil Exclusions

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to (a) update and (b) consult on guidance for head teachers on their powers to exclude.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to publish guidance for schools on the use of (a) in-school units and (b) managed moves.

Nick Gibb: The Department is taking forward an ambitious programme of reform which backs heads and teachers to enforce discipline and, where appropriate, to use exclusion, while equipping schools to support children at risk of exclusion and ensuring excluded children continue to receive support and a good education.The Government previously committed to revising guidance on exclusions and behaviour, including producing guidance on the use of in-school units and ‘managed moves’. We will provide an update on plans to publish revised guidance in due course.

Special Educational Needs: Codes of Practice

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to (a) revise and (b) consult on the SEND Code of Practice.

Michelle Donelan: We will set out our plans for reviewing the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Code of Practice later in the year. Any proposed changes to the Code will be subject to further consultation.

Teachers: Lancashire

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many qualified teachers are employed in schools run by (a) the local education authority, (b) free schools and (c) academies in Lancashire; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure the adequacy of the number of qualified teachers at each of those categories of schools.

Nick Gibb: In Lancashire in 2018, there were 9,2081 full-time equivalent (FTE) qualified teachers employed in state-funded schools. The breakdown of this into local authority maintained, free schools and academies are as follows: FTE qualified teachers[1]Local-authority-maintained schools[2]7,618Free schools82Academies1,509 It is a top priority of the Government to ensure the whole country has a strong teaching workforce. Last year the Department launched the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy – the first ever integrated strategy ensuring there are excellent teachers for every child. The strategy includes the biggest teaching reform in a generation, the Early Career Framework (ECF). The ECF provides new teachers with the solid foundations for a successful career in teaching, backed by £130 million a year in funding when fully rolled out in 2021. We have also committed to plans to raise starting salaries for new teachers to £30,000 by 2022-23, putting teaching on a par with other top graduate professions.Implementation of the national recruitment and retention strategy will support all schools. However, we recognise that some schools and local areas face greater challenges with recruitment and retention than others. We are making every effort to refocus national teacher recruitment and retention programmes to ensure they address local variations in teacher supply, so that more schools can benefit from tried and tested programmes.This includes targeting interventions to support teacher recruitment and retention in all school types in Lancashire. Over £20 million of scholarships funding has been made available in 2017-19 to support teachers and leaders in Category 5 and 6 areas to take up a National Professional Qualification (NPQ), doubling our initial intended investment. The aim of the investment is to retain good teachers and leaders in these areas and support their professional development. Burnley and Pendle are areas that received this support in Lancashire.In addition to this, the Department has set aside £30 million in tailored support for schools struggling with teacher recruitment and retention. This support is designed to help schools improve existing recruitment and retention plans, join national programmes, build local partnerships or fund new initiatives. Three schools in Lancashire local authority are currently receiving this support. [1] Figures have been rounded to whole numbers.[2] Includes a small number of centrally employed staff.

Academies: North West

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many academies are rated by Ofsted as (a) inadequate and (b) requires improvement in (i) Preston constituency, (ii) Lancashire and (iii) the North West; and what steps he is taking to improve educational outcomes for pupils in these areas.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is published by Ofsted and is set out in the tables attached. The first table shows the number of academies in Preston, Lancashire and the North West that are rated as ‘outstanding’, ‘good’, ‘requires improvement’ or ‘inadequate’. The second table shows the national breakdown for all school types in England.As at 31 August 2019, the two academies in Preston constituency were both rated as ‘outstanding’ and 95% of the academies in the Lancashire local authority were rated as ‘good’ or 'outstanding’. Nationally, 86% of all schools in England were rated as either ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’.Where an academy’s performance is a cause for concern, the Department will respond. Where Ofsted have inspected an academy and issued it with an ‘inadequate’ rating, the Department has powers to take decisive action to bring about school improvement, including whether it is in the school’s best interests to be transferred to a stronger academy trust, with the capacity to deliver strong and rapid school improvement. For ‘requires improvement’ schools, including academies, the Department has published a School Support Offer for the academic year 2019/20. The offer provides support from a National Leader of Education and other funded support for schools, based on published criteria. The details of the School Support Offer are available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/school-improvement-support-for-the-2019-to-2020-academic-year.There are currently no academies in Preston constituency that were rated ‘requires improvement’ or ‘inadequate’. In Lancashire, however, there was one academy (Fulwood Academy) that was rated as ‘inadequate’ in February 2018 and one academy (Penwortham Priory Academy) that was rated as ‘inadequate’ in July 2017.The Regional Schools Commissioner for Lancashire and West Yorkshire is overseeing and monitoring the steps that Fulwood Academy is taking to secure improvements, in line with the Schools Causing Concern guidance published at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-causing-concern--2.Penwortham Priory Academy meets the eligibility criteria for the School Support Offer, which provides support from a National Leader of Education. Eligible schools are supported by the Teaching School Council to access this support.



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Academies

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the costs incurred by local education authorities as a result of schools becoming academies; and what criteria his Department uses to risk assess the financial health and governance standards of (a) trusts and (b) sponsors planning to take on new academies.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not routinely collect data on costs incurred by local authorities as a result of schools becoming academies.The Department reviews a broad range of data and intelligence when assessing the financial health and governance of trusts and sponsors planning to take on academies. This includes trusts’ audited accounts and other financial returns, and key risk indicators such as whether trusts are subject to Financial Notices to Improve, or concerns about financial health, governance, qualified accounts or potential compliance issues.

Special Educational Needs and Disability

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to support young people with special educational needs and disabilities to gain (a) internships, (b) apprenticeships and (c) employment opportunities.

Michelle Donelan: Preparation for adulthood, including employment, is a key aspect of the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system. The SEND Code of Practice sets out that all children and young people with SEND should be prepared for adulthood, including employment, and that this preparation should start early. Schools and colleges should work with children, young people and their families to agree clear outcomes including sustainable paid work and should provide careers guidance and supported work experience.Work-based learning, including traineeships, is available for all young people aged 16 to 19, and up to age 25 if the young person has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan.Supported internships are open to young people with EHC plans aged 16 to 25 who need more help to make the transition into employment.In December 2017 the Department for Education provided £9.7 million to local authorities to train job coaches and establish supported internship forums. The number of young people undertaking a supported internship has been rising annually. The most recent report was in January 2019 and showed that 1,646 children and young people with EHC plans were undertaking supported internships, an increase from 1,214 from the same time in 2018, 715 in 2017 and 65 in 2016.Our delivery partner, The National Development Team for Inclusion is funded to provide flexible support across regions, working with Local Authorities and learning providers to ensure quality preparation for adulthood provision, including preparation for employment. We have funded a range of materials which can be found at the following link: https://www.preparingforadulthood.org.uk/downloads/employment. We have also funded Mencap to help colleges arrange work experience placements for learners with SEND.The government is also committed to ensuring that apprenticeships are available to all young people, including those with SEND. To increase accessibility, we have adjusted the minimum English and maths requirements for apprentices with SEND who have an EHC plan or legacy statement, but who are otherwise able to meet all the occupational standards of their apprenticeship. We are working with local partners to test new policies and deliver more apprenticeships for individuals with SEND. The Department for Education have already begun taking forward the recommendations from Mencap’s July 2019 report on ways to make apprenticeships more accessible for people with SEND.When an apprentice does need additional support, our funding system helps training providers to put this in place. Currently £150 a month can be claimed to fund a range of support for apprentices with additional educational needs. Additional funding is available if the actual cost of support is greater, up to a maximum of £19,000 per year. Apprenticeship starts by apprentices with a SEND are now at their highest proportion for the last 9 years. In 2018/19 they accounted for 12% of apprenticeships starts, compared to 11.6% in 2017/18.

Schools: Insulation

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools in England have Aluminium Composite Material cladding on them.

Nick Gibb: The information requested in not held centrally.Following the Grenfell tragedy the Department contacted all bodies responsible for safety in school buildings in England, instructing them to carry out checks to identify any buildings which had Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding of potential concern, so that they could be further investigated and any risks managed and dealt with appropriately and promptly. This work focused on identifying schools with ACM over 18 metres or with residential accommodation, and on student residential buildings over 18 metres with ACM.The safety of pupils, students and staff remains the Department’s highest priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the Department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, as part of the cross-government programme to remediate buildings with potentially dangerous cladding. That approach will continue, and we welcome the package of measures to improve building safety standards announced on 20 January by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. The Department is already looking at ways to ensure the education estate complies fully with the updated advice to building owners, announced as part of that package, on actions they should take in relation to cladding.

Holiday Activities and Food Research Fund

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which Parliamentary constituencies were allocated funding for the free holiday activities and meals for disadvantaged families scheme; and how much funding was allocated to each project.

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what criteria his Department used to determine which regions received funding from the free holiday activities and meals for disadvantaged families scheme.

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons his Department decided not to allocate funding from the free holiday activities and meals for disadvantaged families scheme to (a) Easington constituency and (b) County Durham.

Michelle Donelan: In December 2018, we announced £9 million for the Holiday Activities and Food Programme 2019 and invited organisations to bid to coordinate free holiday provision for disadvantaged children in a local authority area during the 2019 summer holidays.92 bids were received and each bid was assessed against the criteria published in our “Invitation to Bid”, which has been attached.Each bid was then ranked according to their score and we selected the highest scoring bid from each of the nine English regions for funding, along with two further high scoring bids. The level of funding allocated to each successful bid was in line with the scale and nature of their proposed programme, as detailed in their respective bids.For the North East region, the StreetGames programme in Newcastle was selected as the highest scoring bid, with an allocation of £1,028,000. Our allocations to the other successful areas were as follows:Gateshead - £204,000Leeds - £507,000Bradford - £799,000Cheshire West and Chester - £555,000Leicestershire - £799,000Birmingham - £1,999,000Suffolk - £999,000Croydon - £657,000Hampshire - £766,000Plymouth - £604,000We received a bid from Durham County Council which included coverage of the Easington and County Durham constituencies but the bid was unsuccessful as it scored lower than a number of other bids in the North East region, including those in Newcastle and Gateshead. Officials provided feedback to Durham County Council in May 2019. 



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Art and Design: Teachers

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many art and design teachers there were in (a) England and (b) each Local Education Authority in each year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: The information requested for (a) is shown in the table below.Number (headcount) of teachers in state funded secondary schools in England teaching art and design – November 2010 to 2018 YearHeadcount of teachers of art and design201013,200201113,913201212,810201312,654201412,376201511,976201611,957201711,772201811,874 Information on subjects taught by teachers in state funded secondary schools in England is collected from around 85% of state funded secondary schools through the School Workforce Census. This is then grossed up to provide national estimates. The published information shows the proportion of teaching hours spent teaching art and design has remained broadly stable between 2010 and 2018. National level estimates show that in 2010, 4.1% of all teaching hours were spent teaching art and design. In 2018, this was 3.8%. All editions of the publication can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-school-workforce. Information for individual local authorities is not held centrally.

Children: Care Homes

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of children in care placed in homes more than 50 miles from their home are in provision rated (a) Outstanding, (b) Good, (c) Requires Improvement, and (d) Inadequate by Ofsted.

Michelle Donelan: This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Children's Centres

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many designated Sure Start Children's Centres there were in each local authority in England in (a) 2010 and (b) 2019.

Michelle Donelan: Since 18 September 2017, data on Sure Start children’s centres and children’s centre linked sites has been supplied by local authorities via the department’s Get Information about Schools (GIAS) database portal at: https://www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/.Based on the information supplied by local authorities[1], the attached spreadsheet provides details of the number of children’s centre sites by local authority in 2010 and 2019.Councils are reconfiguring services to deliver them more efficiently. If a council decides to close a children’s centre, statutory guidance is clear that they should demonstrate that local children and families would not be adversely affected and that local areas would continue to have sufficient children’s centres to meet their needs. On 7 November 2019, the department published annual figures for the number of children’s centres from 2003 and June 2019. This data is available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/844752/Number_of_Children_s_Centres_2003_to_2019_Nov2019.pdf. [1] The number of children’s centres is based on information supplied by local authorities as at 3 January 2020. These figures may be different to previous answers and could change again in future, since local authorities may update their data at any time. 



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Local Government: Speech and Language Therapy

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many speech and language therapists were employed by local authorities in each financial year since 2010.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to ensure local authorities employ an adequate number of speech and language therapists.

Michelle Donelan: The information requested is not held centrally. We do not collect data on speech and language therapists, as specialist speech, language and communication support is not funded directly by the Department for Education. Speech and Language Therapists working with children are employed by local authorities, the health service or directly by schools. Nevertheless, we are committed to supporting children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) and recognise the importance of identifying SLCN early to enable the right support to be put in place and reduce the impact that SLCN may have in the longer term. For example, the department has funded a range of condition specific organisations to develop resources and training to equip the workforce, including specialist resources in relation to speech, language and communication skills. Specific decisions on how many Speech and Language Therapists are employed by any local authority are a matter for the specific local authority. However, this government has increased local authorities’ high needs funding by £780 million in 2020/21, boosting the budget by 12% and bringing the total spent on supporting those with the most complex needs to over £7 billion for 2020/21.

Higher Education: Barnsley

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people in (a) Barnsley and (b) Barnsley East constituency commenced study at a higher education institution in each year since 2010.

Chris Skidmore: Information on students enrolled in UK Higher Education is collected and published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). More information is available at: https://www.hesa.ac.uk. The number of undergraduate and postgraduate higher education entrants who were domiciled in Barnsley and Barnsley East constituency prior to study in each year between 2010/11 and 2018/19 has been provided in the table. The decline in undergraduate entrants into higher education in Barnsley East constituency and Barnsley local authority can partly be explained by the demographic changes in the area. The entry rate for 18-year-olds into higher education in the Barnsley East constituency has increased from 14.8% in 2010/11 to 21.6% in 2018/19. Undergraduate and postgraduate entrants domiciled in Barnsley local authority and Barnsley East constituency prior to studyUK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)Academic years 2010/11 to 2018/19 Source: DfE analysis of the Higher Education Statistics Agency’s (HESA) Student Record Academic YearEntrants from Barnsley Local AuthorityUndergraduatesPostgraduatesTotal entrants2010/11194552024652011/12185542522802012/13149037518652013/14141041518252014/15139548518802015/16147048519552016/17132548018052017/18133554518802018/1913555401895   Academic YearEntrants from Barnsley East constituencyUndergraduatesPostgraduatesTotal entrants2010/116851708552011/126201357552012/135551106702013/144751506252014/154951656602015/165251556852016/174901556452017/184301806152018/19455185640 Notes:1) Figures are based on the HESA standard registration population.2) Figures are rounded to the nearest five.3) Totals may not sum due to rounding.4) Parliamentary constituency is derived from the student's postcode prior to study. Statistics for the 2019/20 academic year will become available in January 2021.

Ministry of Justice

Police Cautions: Retail Trade

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many police cautions were issued for crimes committed on retail premises in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Chris Philp: The Ministry of Justice publishes information on prosecutions and convictions in England and Wales. However, the data does not identify the context or specific location of offences for example, those carried out on shop workers or retail premises. The Ministry of Justice has published information on out of court disposals including Penalty Notices for Disorder (PND) and cautions up to December 2018. This information, relating to specific offences, can be found using the Out of Court Disposals data tool. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802305/out-of-court-disposal-tool-2018.xlsx

Segregation of Prisoners

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many episodes were recorded of segregation of (a) women and (b) men in custody in England in each of the past three years.

Lucy Frazer: The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost as it would require each prison to obtain the information through their Separation Unit records.

Children: Maintenance

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average waiting time is for a Child Maintenance Service appeal to be heard under Her Majesty’s Courts & Tribunal Service in each court area in Wales.

Chris Philp: General information about waiting times for appeals in the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) are published at:www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics The table below contains the average waiting time for Child Maintenance appeals between July and September 2019 (the latest period for which data are available) at HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) hearing venues in Wales1.Average time (in weeks) taken to administer Child Maintenance appeals between July – September 2019 (the latest period for which figures are available)Aberystwyth~Cardiff59Haverfordwest~Langstone, Newport38Llanelli~Port Talbot42Swansea~Wrexham~ 1 Wales SSCS Region~ denotes five or fewer cases. If the number of disposals are five or fewer, the average disposal time is redacted. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data that are available. Data include appeals cleared with and without a Tribunal hearing. Waiting times are calculated from receipt of an appeal to its final disposal. An appeal is not necessarily disposed of at its first hearing. The final disposal decision on the appeal may be reached after an earlier hearing had been adjourned (which may be directed by the judge for a variety of reasons, such as to seek further evidence), or after an earlier hearing date had been postponed (again, for a variety of reasons, often at the request of the appellant). An appeal may also have been decided at an earlier date by the First-tier Tribunal, only for the case to have gone on to the Upper Tribunal, to be returned once again to the First-tier, for its final disposal.  HMCTS recognises it is important for appeals to be heard as quickly as possible, and is in the process of recruiting more judicial office holders to the SSCS jurisdiction in order to increase capacity and help to reduce waiting times for appellants. In 2018, 118 specialist members were appointed and trained to the jurisdiction, and an extra 129 fee-paid judges were appointed in 2019. The jurisdiction will also benefit from 114 salaried judges and 170 fee-paid judges being recruited across tribunals more widely.

Judiciary

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answers of 20 January to Questions 3722 and 3721, whether a timetable has been set by when the correct statistics will be made available for (a) judge and (b) recorder sitting hours; and whether he expects those sitting hours to be less in total than in 2018.

Chris Philp: The official statistics for judge sitting days (tables 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3 of the Civil Justice Statistics Quarterly, January to March 2019) were withdrawn on 5 September 2019, due to data discrepancies that were discovered after publication on 6 June 2019 and deemed potentially misleading to users. These discrepancies remain under investigation and, in line with the Code of Practice on Statistics, the Chief Statistician and Head of Profession decided to withdraw these tables until the investigations were complete. The corrected figures will be published in the March 2020 publication if our investigation shows that the corrected figures meet the expected quality standards before then; if the appropriate quality standards cannot be met by then, the correct figures will be published in June 2020. This is the date when 2019 sitting days figures are due to be published as part of the normal publication cycle. Until these investigations and corrections have been concluded, it is not possible to make a comparison against 2018 data.

Courts

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many cases were listed in each court in England in each month in 2019.

Chris Philp: The number of cases listed in each court in England in each month in 2019 is provided in the attached tables at annex A. Note:The attached data are broken down by court type.The data contained within these tables are Management Information extracted from live case management systems. They can, therefore, change over time, and are not subject to the same level of checks as those applied to official statistics.The data contained within these tables count each hearing. Some cases will, therefore, appear in these figures more than once.Each dataset includes its own set of caveats and exclusions.The timeframe of these data is in line with published MI data (January-19 to Sept-19)



Annex A
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Hate Crime

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what meetings have taken place between Ministers in his Department and the Law Commission on the review of hate crime legislation.

Chris Philp: There have been no meetings between current Ministers in the Ministry of Justice and the Law Commission on the review of hate crime legislation. The Law Commission were invited to independently review the law relating to hate crime and to make recommendations to the Government for its reform. That review began in March 2019. The Law Commission are considering the current range of offences and aggravating factors in sentencing, and will make recommendations to the Government on the most appropriate models to ensure that the criminal law provides consistent and effective protection from conduct motivated by hatred towards protected groups or characteristics. The review will also take account of the existing range of protected characteristics, identifying any gaps in the scope of protection currently offered under the law and making recommendations to promote a consistent approach. The Law Commission plan to issue a consultation on this matter in early 2020. Further information on the review can be found on the Law Commission webpage at: https://www.lawcom.gov.uk/project/hate-crime/

Treasury

Coastal Erosion: Wales

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on the provision of compensation for (a) individuals and (b) businesses affected by coastal erosion.

Rishi Sunak: Treasury Ministers and officials have regular discussions with all of the devolved administrations on matters of importance to the economy across the UK, including Environment policy. Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management policy is devolved. It is for the devolved administrations to set their own priorities and determine the allocation of funds as they choose.

Borders: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when and where the next meeting of the Northern Ireland Borders Steering Group is scheduled to take place.

Jesse Norman: The Northern Ireland Steering Group does not have its next meeting date or location planned. Members of the Steering Group will continue to be included in future engagement.

EU Law: Wales

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of regulatory divergence from the EU on (a) foreign direct investment into Wales, (b) the Welsh manufacturing sector, (c) the Welsh food and beverages industry, (d) Holyhead port, (e) Fishguard port and (c) other Welsh ports.

John Glen: We are leaving the EU, the Single Market, and the Customs Union, and seeking an ambitious, Canada-style free trade agreement. This entails change, but we will be a sovereign and independent country not a rule taker. We will maintain high standards – not because we are told to but because it is what the British people expect. We will be driven by British interests and will listen to British business in making any decisions. But over 90% of global growth is expected to come from outside the EU over the next decade, so there are real opportunities for the UK. That will require a hard-headed assessment of what we want our economy to look like and what we need to do to deliver it. We will give due consideration to the impacts of the final deal on all our regions and nations.The government will continue publishing Impact Assessments to accompany legislation, where appropriate. We will also set up a Red Tape Challenge to use our new freedom after Brexit to ensure that British rules work for British companies, and to listen to business’s ideas for regulatory reform.

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Chris Stephens: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the staffing complement is of the HMRC national minimum wage compliance unit; and how many posts in that unit were unfilled as of 20 January 2020.

Jesse Norman: The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) receives it. HMRC investigate every complaint they receive from workers, and also carry out a number of targeted, risk-based investigations to tackle new and emerging threats. If anyone thinks they are not receiving at least the minimum wage, they can contact Acas, in confidence, on 0300 123 1100 or submit a query online using the link https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pay-and-work-rights-complaints Based on the most recent available data, as at 30 December 2019 the HMRC National Minimum Wage Compliance Unit had 447 staff in post and 47 vacancies. In addition, staff across HMRC contribute to enforcing the NMW: these include lawyers, technical advisers, and those specialising in criminal investigations.

*No heading*

Neale Hanvey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the effect of NHS pension rules on trends in the level of recruitment and retention of NHS staff.

John Glen: The Government is listening carefully to concerns raised by senior doctors and NHS employers about the effect of limits on pensions tax relief. As part of a wider drive to ensure the NHS has the staff it needs to meet demand and transform care, the Government is carrying out an urgent review of the pensions annual allowance taper problem that has caused some doctors to turn down extra shifts for fear of high tax bills. Ministers at HM Treasury and the Department for Health and Social Care have met the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges and the British Medical Association as part of this review. The review is also considering the responses to the Department for Health and Social Care’s consultation on pension flexibility. The review will report at Budget. In addition, in September 2019 guidance was issued by NHS Employers informing employers of the short-term approaches that they could take to mitigate the effect of pension tax on their workforce this tax year. The NHS has also implemented an immediate measure to preserve clinical capacity amid the increased pressure on services during the winter period. This has enabled NHS employers to compensate NHS clinicians for the effect on their pensions of annual allowance charges incurred in 2019/20.

Employment: Taxation

Jessica Morden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent estimate he has made of how many people will be affected by changes to the off-payroll working rules in (a) the UK, (b) Wales and (c) Newport East.

Jesse Norman: The off-payroll working rules are designed to ensure that an individual who works like an employee, but through their own limited company, pays broadly the same Income Tax and National Insurance contributions as other employees. The Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) published in July 2019 sets out HMRC’s assessment that the reform to the off-payroll working rules is expected to affect 170,000 individuals. The TIIN can be found here: https://bit.ly/2YTbOaA. This is a UK wide figure. The Government launched a review of changes to off-payroll working rules on 7 January 2020 to determine if any further steps can be taken to ensure the smooth and successful implementation of the reform due to come into force in April 2020. The review will also consider whether any additional support for businesses is needed to ensure that the self-employed, who are not in scope of the rules, are not affected. The review will conclude in mid-February 2020.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Buildings: Insulation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much has been paid out from the ACM private sector remediation fund for cladding replacement as 21 January 2020.

Esther McVey: This will be reported in future Building Safety Programme data releases.

Homelessness

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to tackling rough sleeping and homelessness.

Luke Hall: The Government has committed to eliminating rough sleeping in the term of this parliament and to fully enforcing the Homelessness Reduction Act, committing over £1.2 billion to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over the current spending review period to April 2020.In December 2019 we announced the allocation of £263 million in funding for 2020/21 to local authorities designed to support them to deliver services to tackle homelessness. This is an uplift of £23 million on the previous year. The funding has been allocated through a formula which reflects relative homeless pressures, while at the same time aiming to protect local authorities which currently have high levels of temporary accommodation.We have committed to reviewing the implementation of the Act, including the resourcing of it and how it is working in practice, by March 2020. We will make decisions about future funding beyond 2020/21 after the review has concluded.Since 2018, the Rough Sleeping Initiative has provided a total of £76 million to 246 councils across the country, supporting rough sleepers off the streets and into secure accommodation, where they can get the help they need to rebuild their lives. In its first year, the initiative delivered over 1,750 new bed spaces as well as enabling areas with the highest levels of rough sleeping to hire more than 500 new staff. This year, we are providing funding for an estimated 2,600 bed spaces and 750 staff.

Housing: Standards

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support local authorities in setting targets for lowering carbon emissions that go beyond the requirements of the Future Homes Standard.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



The Government has committed to introduce a Future Homes Standard by 2025. This means new homes will be fit for the future proofed, with low carbon heating and lower energy use through high levels of energy efficiency. We propose that new homes built to the Future Homes Standard from 2025 should have carbon dioxide emissions up to 80 per cent lower than those built to current building regulations standards.We are currently consulting on a meaningful and achievable increase to the energy efficiency standards for new homes to be introduced through the Building Regulations in 2020, as a stepping stone to this commitment. The preferred option is to set a standard that should result in a 31 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions. The consultation is open until 7 February and we welcome further evidence.The Future Homes Standard consultation is considering local planning authority powers in respect of energy efficiency. Our current proposals consider setting a stringent minimum standard for energy efficiency through the Building Regulations, meaning that there may no longer be any need for local planning authorities to set higher standards. At least 265 councils have set out their intentions to deliver Passivhaus standard or zero carbon homes, as well as incentivising businesses and homeowners to improve the efficiency of the existing stock.

Buildings: Insulation

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the relative fire safety danger posed by Fire Resistant Aluminium Composite cladding combined with phenolic insulation compared with High Pressure Laminate cladding.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



The independent Expert Advisory Panel has provided clear advice to building owners with regards to the materials in the external walls of existing buildings. The advice was consolidated into a single document and was published on 20 January 2020: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/859285/Building_safety_advice_for_building_owners__including_fire_doors_-_January_2020.pdfThe advice is clear that the removal of unsafe ACM category 3 panels and actions to remediate unsafe HPL systems should be carried out as soon as possible.

Buildings: Insulation

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the paper entitled Fire behaviour of modern façade materials – Understanding the Grenfell Tower fire, published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials on 15 April 2019, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the (a) conclusions published in that paper and (b) finding that high-pressure laminate panels have a higher total heat release than polyethylene-aluminium composites.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



Acting on advice from the Expert Panel, the Government has commissioned research from the Building Research Establishment (BRE) to support further understanding of the fire performance of Non-Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) external wall systems. The Department has commissioned the BRE to carry out bespoke medium scale tests on High Pressure Laminate panels. The tests include burning at medium scale large samples of High Pressure Laminates and measure parameters such as heat release rate and temperature. The information gathered during this research program will provide reliable data to undertake an assessment of the heat release of a wide range of cladding panels. A copy of the methodology has been made available in the House Library.

Buildings: Insulation

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his oral statement of 20 January 2020, Official Report, column 24, on Building Safety, whether it is his policy that Aluminium Composite Material cladding should be removed from all buildings regardless of height.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2020 to Question 3274 on High Rise Flats: Insulation, whether it his policy to recommend the use of the new EWS1: External Wall Fire Review industry-wide valuation process.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



We are supportive of the approach designed by industry to assist in the valuation of high rise residential properties. The Department will continue to work closely with industry as EWS1 is used within the mortgage market.

Temporary Accommodation: Children

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent estimate he has made of the number of children in temporary accommodation in (a) the North West, (b) Liverpool City Region, (c) Wirral and (d) Wallasey constituency in each of the last five years.

Luke Hall: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



The number of children in temporary accommodation in the North West and Wirral at the end of each financial year where figures are available from 2015 to 2019 are provided here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness.Data is collected at the local authority level and therefore not available at lower geographical areas. Figures for Wallasey are therefore not available. Liverpool City Region can be calculated by summing figures for Liverpool, Halton, Knowsley, Sefton, St. Helens and Wirral. In December 2019 we announced the allocation of £263 million in funding for 2020/21 to local authorities designed to support them to deliver services to tackle homelessness. The purpose of this funding is to give local authorities more control and flexibility in managing homelessness pressures and supporting those who at risk of homelessness, including providing them with temporary accommodation.  England and regional totals include imputations for missing values, including Halton, so the sum of individual figures will not match these totals.

Housing: Standards

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of (a) the Future Homes Standard and (b) housing policy to the UK reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



The housing sector, like most other sectors of the country, will have to almost fully decarbonise to meet our 2050 net zero carbon emissions target. While we have had significant successes to date, with a 15 per cent reduction in average household energy use since 2010, we know that a step change in pace of delivery will be needed to meet the challenge of net zero.The Government has committed to introduce a Future Homes Standard by 2025. This means new homes will be fit for the future, with low carbon heating and lower energy use through high levels of energy efficiency. We propose that new homes built to the Future Homes Standard from 2025 should have carbon dioxide emissions up to 80 per cent lower than those built to current building regulations standards.We are currently consulting on a meaningful and achievable increase to the energy efficiency standards for new homes to be introduced through the Building Regulations in 2020, as a stepping stone to this commitment. The preferred option is to set a standard that should result in a 31 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions. The consultation is open until 7 February and we welcome further evidence.

Housing: Standards

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost of retrofitting new build properties to meet carbon zero standards.

Esther McVey: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Housing Infrastructure Fund: North West

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much and what proportion of the Housing Infrastructure Fund funding has been allocated to (a) the North West and (b) Wirral Council.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



Around £215 million of this has been allocated to the North West, including £6 million to Wirral Council’s Northbank project, which will unlock up to 1,100 homes at Wirral Waters.

Towns Fund

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 2 October 2019 to Question 291442, if he will publish the data used to assess the EU exit response criteria for the 100 towns referred to.

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 2 October 2019 to Question 291442 on the Towns Fund, if he will publish the data used for the indicator economic shocks for the 100 towns referred to in that Answer.

Jake Berry: At this point in time, the Government is not able to publish the full selection methodology used to choose the 100 Towns that will work towards Town Deals, including the EU exit response criteria. This is because it includes information that relates to the formulation and development of government policy which is still live and ongoing.

Planning

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to publish the Accelerated Planning White Paper.

Esther McVey: We will be publishing an ambitious Planning White Paper in due course. This will transform the planning system so that it is more responsive, accessible and certain for all users, including home owners and small businesses.

Buildings: Fires

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2020 to Question 1897 on Buildings: Fires, what steps his Department took in response to the Building Research Establishment's report on external fire spread.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



Following the completion of the research commissioned by the Government, we worked with BRE to ensure that the research findings were summarised in two journal articles and published to ensure that the sector could act on its findings.

Social Rented Housing: Tenancy Agreements

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many people living in social housing have been denied the right to succeed a tenancy after the death of their parent(s) in (a) London and (b) Bethnal Green and Bow constituency in the 12 months.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



The Department does not hold this information.I am looking forward to meeting the Hon. Member in due course to discuss the issue of succession to social housing tenancies.

Social Rented Housing: Regulation

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to publish the results of his Department's consultation entitled, Consultation on changes to the intervention, enforcement and use of powers guidance, published in June 2019.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 27 January 2020



This consultation was carried out by the Regulator of Social Housing. The consultation closed on 16 August 2019 and the regulator published its response on 16 December 2019

Department for Exiting the European Union

Brexit

Sir David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2020 to Question 1657 on Brexit, what contingency plans the Government has in the event that the European Parliament does not approve the Withdrawal Agreement by 31 January 2020.

James Duddridge: The European Parliament will vote on the Withdrawal Agreement on 29 January. The European Parliament’s Constitutional Affairs Committee published its draft recommendation on 14 January. This recommended the European Parliament give its consent to the Withdrawal Agreement. The Secretary of State has discussed this with Brexit Steering Group Co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt.Once the ratification process is complete on both sides, the UK leaves the EU with a deal on 31 January.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: Prisoners and Prisoners on Remand

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure (a) serving prisoners and (b) people remanded in custody do not receive social security benefits to which they are not entitled by reason of being in custody.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) women and (b) men (i) serving custodial sentences and (ii) remanded in custody received housing benefit or the housing element of universal credit during their time in custody in each of the past two years.

Will Quince: The Department is routinely notified by Prison Services in England, Wales and Scotland when offenders enter custody, including those on remand. We have specialist teams to identify claimants who are in receipt of Universal Credit and Legacy working age benefits so that the appropriate action can be taken. Serving prisoners and those remanded can continue to receive the housing element of Universal Credit if they are due to serve 6 months or less in prison and were in receipt on of these payments on entry to prison. The Department does not centrally collect data for claimants who are serving a custodial sentence, or who are remanded, in prison and in receipt of housing benefit, or the housing element of Universal Credit. To provide this would incur a disproportionate cost.

Employment Schemes

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to maintain the Local Supported Employment scheme.

Justin Tomlinson: The Local Supported Employment Proof of Concept ran between November 2017 and May 2019 and was delivered in partnership with 9 Local Authorities. We are currently considering our next steps to build on the findings from this test.

Employment: Disability

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) disability employment adviser leaders and (b) disability employment advisers are employed by her Department in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK.

Justin Tomlinson: From April 2019, Jobcentre Plus introduced an enhanced Disability Employment Adviser and a new Disability Employment Adviser Leader role supporting Jobcentre colleagues to provide high quality services to disabled people and those with health conditions. One of the key transformational elements of Universal Credit is that it provides us with the opportunity to support people who are in work to progress and increase their earnings. As of December 2019, there are 10 full time equivalents Disability Employment Adviser Leader (DEALS) in place across the Jobcentre network in Scotland and 52 full time equivalents Disability Employment Advisers (DEAs). Nationally there are 98 full time equivalents DEALs and 501 full time equivalents DEAs. The actual headcount will be higher when taking account of part time and dual role workers. The figures provided are taken from the Departments ‘Activity Based Management’ (ABM) system. The data is derived from unpublished management information, collected and intended for internal departmental use and has not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard.

Maternity Allowance

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Answer of 5 November 2019 to Question 8582 on maternity allowance, what the average working day turn around for Maternity Allowance claims was from (a) 16 to 31 October 2019, (b) 1 to 15 November 2019, (c) 16 to 30 November 2019 and (d) 1 to 15 December 2019.

Mims Davies: The average working day turn-around for Maternity Allowance claims for the periods quoted are: 16th-31st October – 10.5 weeks1st – 15th November – 9 weeks16th-30th November – 7.5 weeks1st – 15th December – 6 weeks

Universal Credit

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the value of deductions to universal credit payments under each reason for deduction in the latest period for which figures are available.

Will Quince: Holding answer received on 23 January 2020



The Department’s deductions policy strikes a fair balance between a claimant’s need to meet their obligations and their ability to ensure they can meet their day-to-day needs. From October 2019, Universal Credit deductions have been reduced to 30% of a claimant’s standard allowance down from 40% to better achieve these objectives. In the latest period for which figures are available (August 2019), £1.3 billion of Universal Credit was paid, of which £94 million (7%) was deducted. The table below provides a breakdown of the deductions by reason.  Deduction reasonValue of Deductions (£)UC advance repayments50,252,000Tax Credit overpayments14,295,000DWP overpayments8,042,000Social fund loans5,466,000Arrears of rent and/or service charges5,001,000Fines4,931,000HB overpayments1,771,000Arrears of Community Charge or Council Tax1,285,000UC Recoverable Hardship payments843,000DWP Fraud overpayments742,000Fuel and Water Ongoing consumption615,000Child maintenance527,000Arrears of water charges273,000HB and DWP Civil Penalties121,000HB Fraud overpayments113,000HB and DWP Administrative Penalties76,000Arrears of fuel (electric and gas)67,000Arrears of Eligible loans51,000Arrears of Integration loans44,000Tax Credit Fraud overpayments1,000Mortgage interestless than 500  Notes:1. Values of deductions in the table are rounded to the nearest thousand. The total value of all deductions and the amount of universal credit paid is rounded to the nearest £1,000,000.2. Deductions include advance repayments, third party deductions and all other deductions, but exclude sanctions and fraud penalties which are reductions of benefit rather than deductions.3. Amount of Universal Credit paid reflects the amount of money paid to claimants and their landlords as part of their award, including the amount which they would have been entitled to had it not been deducted. It does not include other payments such as advances and hardship payments.4. Figures are provisional and are subject to retrospective change as later data becomes available.

Children: Poverty

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children in Worsley and Eccles South constituency were categorised under section 4 (a) (1)(a), (b) (1)(b), (c) (1)(c) and (d) (1)(d) of the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016 in each of the last four calendar years.

Will Quince: National Statistics on the percentage of children in low income households (relating to Section 4(a) 1(a) and 1(c) of the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016) are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication. Statistics for the percentage of children in low income households is not available at constituency level in this publication because the survey sample sizes are too small to support the production of robust estimates at this geography. Statistics for the North West region can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/households-below-average-income-199495-to-201718, “children-hbai-timeseries-1994-95-2017-18-tables” in tables 4.16ts (for relative low income, before and after housing costs) and 4.22ts (for absolute low income, before and after housing costs) Data for the percentage of children in low income and material deprivation (relating to Section 4(a) 1(b) of the Act) is not available at constituency level in the “Households Below Average Income” publication. Statistics for the United Kingdom are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/households-below-average-income-199495-to-201718, “children-trends-hbai-1994-95-2017-18-tables” in table 4.5tr. Experimental Statistics on the percentage of children in persistent low income (relating to Section 4(a) 1(d) of the Act) are published annually in the “Income Dynamics” publication. Statistics for the percentage of children in persistent low income households is not available at constituency level in this publication because the survey sample sizes are too small to support the production of robust estimates at this geography. Statistics for the North West region can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-dynamics-2016-to-2017 in table 3.2p (on a before housing costs basis) and table 3.8p (on an after housing costs basis).

Employment: Disability

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans her Department has to increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Justin Tomlinson: The Government is committed to reducing the disability employment gap and seeing a million more disabled people in work by 2027. We help disabled people return to and stay in work through programmes including the Work and Health Programme, the new Intensive Personalised Employment Support Programme, Access to Work and Disability Confident. There were 4.2 million working age disabled people in employment in the UK in Q3 2019. This was an increase of 354,000 since last year (Q3 2018), and an overall increase of 1.3 million since Q3 2013, the earliest comparable figure. We will publish a National Strategy for Disabled People before the end of 2020. This will look at ways to improve the benefits system, opportunities and access for disabled people in terms of housing, education, transport and jobs

Poverty: Children

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2020 to Question 317 on Poverty: Children, if she will take steps to lift the two-child limit for (a) child tax credits and (b) universal credit.

Will Quince: The Government’s view is that providing support for a maximum of two children or qualifying young persons in Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit ensures fairness between claimants on the one hand and, on the other, those taxpayers who support themselves solely through work. Universal Credit is designed to mirror the world of work where families do not automatically see their income rise on the birth of a new child. This Government is committed to delivering a sustainable, long-term solution to poverty in all its forms. Tackling child poverty requires an approach that goes beyond one that focuses on income alone to one that addresses the root causes of poverty and disadvantage and improves long-term outcomes for families and children. We recognise that some claimants are not able to make the same choices about the number of children in their family, which is why exceptions have been put in place to protect certain groups.

Universal Credit: Severe Disability Premium

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of universal credit claimants previously in receipt of employment and support allowance that have (a) been identified as being eligible to receive severe disability premium transitional payments and (b) received those transitional payments in the latest period for which figures are available; and what her timescale is for payment of all severe disability premium payments to eligible claimants.

Justin Tomlinson: A gateway was introduced from 16 January 2019 to prevent those claimants entitled to the Severe Disability Premium (SDP) as part of their legacy benefit from claiming Universal Credit. Additionally, a commitment was made for monthly transitional payments to be made to eligible former SDP claimants who have already moved to Universal Credit due to a change in circumstances and to provide a lump sum arrears payment, where appropriate. As of 17 January 2020, 15,397 claims have been paid an SDP transitional payment. To date, over £51.5m has been disbursed to support former SDP claimants, including the recurring payments that have now commenced. Positive progress has been made and caseload growth has now slowed, however, in the event a new case is discovered payments will be in place quickly. It is not possible to estimate when we will have paid everyone who is entitled as some people become entitled to these payments retrospectively, and therefore the caseload is not a fixed number.

*No heading*

Holly Mumby-Croft: What steps she is taking to (a) reduce the number of assessments undertaken by people with disabilities and (b) ensure adequate support for those people.

Justin Tomlinson: We have made improvements to reduce assessments for Work Capability and Personal Independence Payment. This includes reducing review frequency for pensioners and people with severe or progressive conditions. We are also exploring our manifesto commitment to ensure a minimum award review duration for PIP awards. The planned Green Paper will continue to look at how we can further improve the experience for people with health conditions and disabilities.

*No heading*

Gordon Henderson: What steps she is taking with the Secretary of State for Justice to reduce the waiting time for welfare benefit tribunal appeals.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP is working with the Ministry of Justice to develop a new digital system with a view to enabling swifter processing of appeals and a better service for all parties to the proceedings. Personal Independence Payment, Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit claimants can now submit their appeal online.

Food Poverty: Newcastle upon Tyne

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he plans to take to tackle food poverty in Newcastle upon Tyne constituency.

Will Quince: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Poverty: Children

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will bring forward legislative proposals for the introduction of statutory targets to (a) reduce and (b) end child poverty.

Will Quince: The Government is committed to action that delivers a sustainable long-term solution to child poverty, including reforming the benefits system so that it supports employment and higher pay. Universal Credit is designed to help people move into work faster, stay in work longer and spend more time looking to increase their earnings and, when fully rolled out, we expect Universal Credit will boost employment by 200,000, lifting people out of poverty and generating £8 billion in economic benefits every year.The child poverty targets introduced in 2010 were replaced with two statutory measures of parental employment and children’s educational attainment, the two areas which can make the biggest difference to children’s long-term outcomes. We have no current plans to reintroduce a target-based approach that focuses on income alone.

Universal Credit: Disqualification

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in the intensive work search regime that were (a) in and (b) out of work have been sanctioned in each month in each of the last two years.

Mims Davies: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. However, the member may find it useful to check the UC Sanction Rates tables published on the Stat-Xplore website at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk Specifically, those available on the intensive work regime that have received a sanction. Guidance for users is available at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

Universal Credit: North West

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of claimants of legacy benefits who will naturally migrate to universal credit without transitional protection before the process of managed migration as a whole starts in (a) the North West, (b) Wirral and (c) Wallasey.

Will Quince: Claimants who naturally migrate to Universal Credit will do so because they will have had a significant change in their circumstances which previously would have led to a new claim to another existing benefit. In these situations, it has always been the case that the assessment of their new benefit will be based on their new circumstances and under the rules of their new benefit without regard to their previous entitlement. The Department has delivered a number of improvements to support claimants during their first assessment period, such as removing waiting days and paying those claimants moving from Housing Benefit to Universal Credit a two-week run-on. We are also introducing a two-week run-on for eligible claimants of Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance from July 2020. Data surrounding Universal Credit caseload growth at national, regional and constituency level is published at: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk  Guidance for users is available at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

Social Security Benefits: North West

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of administrative errors made processing applications during the roll-out of (a) universal credit and (b) personal independence payment in (i) the North West, (b) Wirral and (c) Wallasey.

Will Quince: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Universal Credit: Severe Disability Premium

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect on a claimant's (a) mental health and (b) financial situation of the roll-out of universal credit on people in receipt of the severe disability premium.

Justin Tomlinson: Universal Credit is simpler and fairer than the legacy system, is designed to target resources at those that need them most and to provide support for people who can’t work or need help moving towards the labour market. We have trained work coaches in how to support claimants with mental health conditions, and claimants who enquire about their Severe Disability Premium (SDP) transitional protections are connected with Specialised SDP Agents. Our work coaches all undertake a robust training process which includes a focus on health conditions and disabilities, how to tailor service delivery according to needs, and has specific content on requirement setting for people with mental health conditions.A gateway was introduced from 16 January 2019 to prevent those claimants entitled to the SDP as part of their legacy benefit from claiming Universal Credit. Additionally, a commitment was made for monthly transitional payments to be made to eligible former SDP claimants who have already moved to Universal Credit due to a change in circumstances and to provide a lump sum arrears payment, where appropriate. Positive progress has been made and caseload growth has now slowed, however, in the event a new case is discovered payments will be in place quickly. It is not possible to estimate when we will have paid everyone who is entitled as some people become entitled to these payments retrospectively, and therefore the caseload is not a fixed number.

Jobcentres: Computers

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many computers are available for public use in Jobcentres in (a) each region of England and (b) the UK.

Mims Davies: The information requested is detailed below and is from internal DWP data which is correct at the time of this response. a) English regionsRegionNumber of devicesSouthern England1380London & Home Counties1128Central1214Northern England2096 b) UKRegion (total)Number of devicesEngland5818Scotland784Wales480 The project that led on delivering our new PCs instructed offices to place the number of devices they have for replacement. However, some offices ordered a reduced number of devices based on capacity in the office and the need of customers at that time.We closed a number of offices between 2017 and 2019. In the past twelve months, we have closed a further 9 sites and completed 7 co-locations and where those offices were co-located, DWP devices were not installed because PCs for public use were provided by the Local Authority or Third Party. We also have improved access to our Wi-Fi services in all jobcentres, allowing customers to use their own personal devices to access internet services. We also constantly review the number of PC’s available for customers and have capacity to increase the number of devices quickly, if the need arises.

Poverty: Children

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children lived in (a) poverty and (b) extreme poverty in Greater Manchester in each of the last 10 years.

Will Quince: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Poverty: Children

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of children in Manchester, Gorton constituency that are living in (a) poverty and (b) absolute poverty have (i) one household member in full-time employment, (ii) two household members in full-time employment, (iii) one household member in part-time employment, (iv) two household members in part-time employment and (v) no household members in employment in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Will Quince: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Access to Work Programme

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much was spent by the Access to Work scheme in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) England and (d) Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Justin Tomlinson: The Access to Work scheme is only available to those living in England, Scotland and Wales. Please see below the Access to Work expenditure seen in Table 11 and Table 11a of the official statistics broken down in terms of Scotland, Wales and England. The Access to Work official statistics can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/access-to-work-statistics-april-2007-to-march-2019 Expenditure by country, 2009/10 - 2018/19 (Nominal Terms)   Financial year 2014/152015/162016/172017/182018/19  Country not recorded*£369,000£403,000£417,000£516,000£636,000England£85,852,000£85,764,000£91,987,000£98,362,000£114,441,000Wales£4,121,000£3,816,000£4,204,000£4,234,000£5,322,000Scotland£6,658,000£6,500,000£7,161,000£7,712,000£8,721,000Total£96,999,000£96,483,000£103,768,000£110,823,000£129,120,000Expenditure by country, 2009/10 - 2018/19 (Real Terms, 2018/19 prices)   Financial year 2014/152015/162016/172017/182018/19  Country not recorded*£395,000£428,000£433,000£525,000£636,000England£91,951,000£91,128,000£95,563,000£100,166,000£114,441,000Wales£4,413,000£4,055,000£4,367,000£4,311,000£5,322,000Scotland£7,131,000£6,906,000£7,440,000£7,854,000£8,721,000Total£103,890,000£102,517,000£107,802,000£112,856,000£129,120,000 Source: Disability Service Client (DiSC) administrative system; Single Operating Platform (SOP) payment system; Provider Referrals and Payments System (PRaP). Notes:* ‘Not recorded’ is used throughout the Access to Work publication and denotes the customers where that variable is missing. In this case, it is where information relating to a person’s residence is missing, most commonly their postcode.The expenditure data in these statistics covers payments directly to individuals and employers, as well as to assessment providers and the Mental Health Support Service.The expenditure data in these statistics does not include DWP’s staffing and operational costs relating to Access to Work.Real terms expenditure (where actual spending has been adjusted to remove the effects of general price level changes (inflation) over time using price levels from a base year) has been calculated using the Consumer Prices Index published by the Office for National Statistics. Real terms figures provide a more meaningful measurement of change over time.Expenditure figures have been calculated using a methodology consistent with that used in the published Access to Work statistics. Please see the background information and methodology note for more information, in particular the “Weighting” section on pages 8-9. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/access-to-work-statistics-background-information-and-methodologyAccess to Work expenditure for each country is based on residency of the beneficiary as opposed to place of work.Figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 due to the weighting methodology used (see Note 4).

Ministry of Defence

216 Squadron

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's timetable is for making a decision on the future location of 216 Squadron.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Initially 216 Squadron will be based at RAF Waddington with plans still being developed for the longer term.

216 Squadron

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects 216 Squadron to become operationally capable.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Number 216 Squadron will be reformed on 1 April 2020 however, the capabilities associated with 216 Squadron are still under test and development.

Army: Recruitment

Carla Lockhart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people from each part of the UK applied to join the British Army in each of the last five years.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The application figures for the last five recruiting years, broken down by Nation, can be found below. Recruiting YearEnglandNorthern IrelandScotlandWales2014-1578,9003,1109,1606,1602015-1676,5802,7908,9405,5102016-17102,0803,23011,3906,8902017-1886,0402,9609,0405,7102018-1995,3803,3409,6206,560 Notes/Caveats:Application figures are based on single Service estimates; official statistics have not been produced by Defence Statistics.The table includes applications received for both the Regular Army and Reserves.If a candidate has made more than one application, each application will be counted separately.Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10, though numbers ending in a “5” have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent the systematic bias caused by always rounding numbers upwards.Applications made to join the Military Provost Guard Service have not been included.These figures do not break down the total applications received to join the Army. Applications will have also been received from the Channel Islands, Republic of Ireland, Commonwealth countries and British Overseas Territories.

Strategic Defence and Security Review

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to make an announcement on the Government's Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Mr Ben Wallace: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my noble Friend, Earl Howe, on 8 January 2020 in the House of Lords (Official Report, column 177).



Integrated Security, Defence and Foreign Policy Re
(Word Document, 31.73 KB)

Reserve Forces and Cadet Association

Sir Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish the review of Reserve Forces and Cadet Associations.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The Department intends to publish the review of the Reserve Forces and Cadets Associations in February 2020.

Armed Forces Covenant

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to bring forward legislation to provide a statutory duty to implement the Armed Forces Covenant as outlined in New Decade New Approach.

Johnny Mercer: Legislation will be brought forward at the earliest opportunity. The UK Government will be engaging fully with Ministerial colleagues across the country, including those in the Northern Ireland Executive, in due course.

Armed Forces: Conditions of Employment

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will consult on establishing a military federation to represent serving armed forces personnel on pay, pension and conditions similar to the Police Federation.

Johnny Mercer: The Ministry of Defence has no plans for a consultation on the creation of a military federation. I am satisfied that the interests of members of the Armed Forces as employees are suitably represented by the Chain of Command, the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA), the Royal Naval Association, the Royal Air Force Association, the Veterans Association and a great many more Regimental Associations and groups around the country. Many of these associations also represent the veterans' community. Along with the various Service-facing charities, the above-mentioned associations will all have regular access to the Chain of Command and Ministers to represent their members' interests.

Home Office

Emergency Services: Sirens

Hilary Benn: To ask the Minister for the Home Department, whether guidance has been issued to the emergency services on the use of directional sirens on their vehicles.

Kit Malthouse: The use of sirens by the police and other emergency services is controlled by Regulation 99 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986.It is for the emergency services to consider how best to use their professional judgment to decide when and where the use of sirens is appropriate.

Police Custody: Mental Illness

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people spent time in a police station as a place of safety due to a mental health condition in each of the past five years.

Kit Malthouse: The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of persons detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983, broken down by place of safety taken to.These data were collected by the Home Office on a mandatory basis for the first time in 2016/17, and were published as part of the ‘Police powers and procedures, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin, which can be accessed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-powers-and-procedures-england-and-wales-year-ending-31-march-2019 Figures for 2015/16 were collected and published by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and can be accessed using the following links:http://www.npcc.police.uk/documents/S136%20Data%202015%2016.pdf.

British Nationality

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, under what circumstances the Government is able to remove the citizenship of a UK national who does not have access to a secondary citizenship.

Kevin Foster: Section 40 of the British Nationality Act (BNA) 1981 provides for the deprivation of British citizenship.A decision to deprive British citizenship on the ground it is conducive to the public good can only be made if the person would not be left stateless. Where a deprivation decision is made on the ground it is conducive to the public good because the person has conducted themselves in a manner which is seriously prejudicial to the vital interests of the UK, the Secretary of State must have reasonable grounds for believing the person can become a national of another country.There is no requirement for a person to have access to another citizenship where a decision to deprive British citizenship is made on the grounds it was obtained by means of fraud, false representation or concealment of a material fact.UK deprivation legislation is compliant with the 1961 UN Convention on Statelessness.

Wales Office

UK-Africa Investment Summit: Wales

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2020 to Question 3175 on UK-Africa Investment Summit: Wales, what discussion he had with the Board of Trade on ensuring that Wales’ interests are represented in longer term engagement with Africa.

Simon Hart: Discussions at the UK Board of Trade on the UK-Africa Investment Summit and its opportunities for UK businesses involved my predecessor. As a quarterly meeting, the Board has not met since I became Secretary of State. My predecessor joined Prime Minister May’s 2018 Africa visit, alongside two Welsh businesses.I will ensure that the views and interests of Wales are voiced at future meetings as the UK Board of Trade works to promote trade and post-Brexit trade opportunities across the whole of the UK.Boosting the opportunities available for Welsh businesses is a key priority for my team who work closely with the Department for International Trade to ensure Wales is represented in all trade talks and negotiation, not just the UK Board of Trade.The UK-Africa Investment Summit will create new lasting partnerships that will deliver more investment and jobs. This will benefit people and businesses in Africa and across the whole of the UK, including Wales, promoted through UK-wide activity.

Cabinet Office

Young People

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate he has made of the number of people under 24 years of age that are in (a) training, (b) employment and (c) education in (i) York Central constituency, (ii) York Unitary Authority and (iii) England.

Chloe Smith: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 20 January 2020.The correct answer should have been:

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.The data contained in the previous answer has been identified as incorrect. I have asked the UK Statistics Authority to provide an updated response.


UKSA Response 
(PDF Document, 95.35 KB)




UKSA Response (Amended)
(PDF Document, 95.14 KB)

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.The data contained in the previous answer has been identified as incorrect. I have asked the UK Statistics Authority to provide an updated response.


UKSA Response 
(PDF Document, 95.35 KB)




UKSA Response (Amended)
(PDF Document, 95.14 KB)

Infected Blood Inquiry

Ian Lavery: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has to consult people affected by the Contaminated Blood Scandal on the (a) effect of infection on their health and (b) adequacy of the treatment they received.

Oliver Dowden: I will be meeting with members of the infected and affected community on Tuesday 28th January 2020 to listen to their experiences, so that I can hear first-hand about the issues that matter most to them.

Cybercrime

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to change the National Cyber Security Strategy after 2021.

Oliver Dowden: The cyber security challenge will endure beyond 2021. We committed in our manifesto to invest more in cyber security, embrace new technologies and legislate to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online.Work on our plans for cyber security after 2021 is in progress. This work includes reviewing progress on delivery, while recognising that cyber security operates in a dynamic environment which is constantly evolving and will continue to change up to – and beyond – 2021.

Government Departments: Terminal Illnesses

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether (a) Government Departments, (b) agencies of Departments and (c) Non Departmental Public Bodies are permitted to sign up to the Trades Union Congress's charter entitled, Dying to Work.

Jeremy Quin: As terms and conditions for sick absence are delegated, departments are able to decide whether they wish to sign up to the Trades Union Congress's charter entitled, Dying to Work.

Department for International Trade

Free Zones: Aberdeen

Stephen Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what plans the Government has to create a free port in Aberdeen.

Stephen Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether an economic impact assessment has been undertaken on a potential free port in Aberdeen.

Stephen Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, when her Department last met with the Aberdeen Harbour Board to discuss a potential free port in Aberdeen.

Stephen Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what additional infrastructure would be necessary to support a free port in Aberdeen.

Stephen Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether the Government will fund all additional infrastructure required to facilitate a potential free port in Aberdeen.

Graham Stuart: The Government is working to ensure that we produce an ambitious and attractive Freeport offer that achieves the Prime Minister’s aim of levelling up our regions and attracting business investment across the whole of the UK. In doing so the Government is working with the Devolved Administrations, including the Scottish Government.Specific locations for Freeports will be chosen through a fair and transparent process. Details will be announced in due course.

Trade Promotion: Scotland

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2020 to Question 3171 on Trade Promotion: Wales, what recent discussions she has had with the Scottish Government Minister for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs on trade promotion.

Graham Stuart: My Rt Hon Friend the Minister of State for Trade Policy (Conor Burns) has spoken to the Scottish Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation on a range of issues, including a telephone call on 15 January. He also met the trade ministers from all the Devolved Administrations on 23 January at the Ministerial Forum. The DIT Directors General for Trade and Investment met with all the Devolved Administrations in London on 17 January.

UK-Africa Investment Summit

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2020 to Question 2474, what businesses (a) were invited to and (b) attended the UK-Africa Investment Summit on 20 January 2020.

Graham Stuart: Department for International Trade indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

UK-Africa Investment Summit

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2020 to Question 2476, what businesses invited to the January 2020 UK-Africa Investment Summit (a) operate and (b) have interests in the (i) fossil fuel exploration, production or transportation, (ii) aviation, (iii) agrochemicals and (iv) genetically modified crop sectors.

Graham Stuart: The Summit brought together hundreds of UK and African business representatives from a wide-range of sectors. We do not hold a central list of which companies operate or invest in which industries.

Food: Standards

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) chlorinated chicken and (b) foods that do not meet UK food standards are not included in future trade deals.

Conor Burns: The Government has made it clear that any future trade deals must work for UK consumers, farmers and companies. We remain firmly committed to upholding our high environmental, food safety and animal welfare standards post-Brexit and the EU Withdrawal Act will transfer all existing EU food safety provisions onto the UK statute book.

Food: Standards

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what plans she has to maintain UK food production standards in future trade deals.

Conor Burns: The Government has been clear that we remain firmly committed to upholding our high environmental, food safety and animal welfare standards post-Brexit and the EU Withdrawal Act will transfer all existing EU food safety provisions onto the UK statute book. Any future trade agreements must work for UK consumers, farmers and companies.

Food: Standards

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that imported food meets UK standards as a condition of entry after the UK leaves the EU.

Conor Burns: After EU exit, the UK will decide how we set and maintain our own standards and regulations and we have been clear that we remain firmly committed to upholding our high environmental, food safety and animal welfare standards. The UK’s independent food regulators will continue to ensure that all food imports into the UK comply with those high standards.

Bombs: Export Controls

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether the Government has issued arms export licences for finished bombs to Raytheon UK in the last five years.

Graham Stuart: No licences have been granted to Raytheon UK for finished bombs in the last five years.

Trade Promotion: Iraq

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent steps her Department has taken to promote bilateral trade between (a) the UK and Iraq and (b) the UK and the Kurdistan Region; and if he will make a statement.

Conor Burns: Total trade between the UK and Iraq was £720m for the four quarters ending Q3 2019. This represents a 45% increase (£246m) over the previous year. Our efforts to increase trade with Iraq are on-going. Recent initiatives include Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner’s participation at the Iraq Britain Business Council Conference, a trade visit to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq by the Department for International Trade’s Iraq Director, our Consul-General in Erbil briefing locally based British businesses and the doubling of UK Export Finance’s market cover from £1bn to £2bn in April 2019.

Iron and Steel: Overseas Trade

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many bilateral meetings her Department has had on trade in steel or steel products at (a) ministerial and (b) official level since September 2019.

Graham Stuart: Since September 2019 the Department for International Trade has engaged bilaterally on trade in steel or steel products once at a ministerial level and on six occasions at official level. Ministers have also attended roundtables on issues which related to trade in steel or steel products, for which the steel industry were also in attendance.

Iron and Steel: USA

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether she will make the removal of Section 232 tariffs for steel a pre-condition of a free trade agreement with the United States.

Conor Burns: The UK has consistently opposed US tariffs on steel and aluminium. The UK is a close national security ally of the US and our steel and aluminium products are important for US businesses and defence, and we continue to reject any claim that they harm US national security. We will continue to press for an urgent resolution to these tariffs as part of our ongoing trade discussions with the US.

Department for International Trade: Staff

Mr David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many trade negotiators are employed by her Department.

Conor Burns: I refer the Rt Hon Member for Tottenham to the answer I gave to the Hon Member for Dundee East on 23 January 2020, UIN: 5362.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Gambling Act 2005

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Queen's Speech of December 2019 and background briefing notes, what discussions her Department has had with relevant stakeholders on the Government's proposals to review the Gambling Act 2005.

Helen Whately: Ministers and officials engage regularly with stakeholders and details of ministerial meetings are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dcms-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings-1-april-to-30-june-2019 The Government has committed to review the Gambling Act 2005 to make sure it is fit for the digital age and a wide range of stakeholders will be consulted as part of this process. We will announce further details in due course.

Arts: North East

Ian Lavery: To ask the Minister of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, which arts organisations in the North East of England his Department plans to allocate funding to in 2020.

Helen Whately: The list outlines Arts organisations and practitioners across the North East that have been allocated funding from Arts Council England for 2020. This list is not exhaustive as ACE expects further funding applications from practitioners and organisations based in the North East of England throughout the year. Organisation NameTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsNorth Music TrustNorth Music TrustDurham & Darlington Music Education HubTees Valley Music ServiceSunderland Music Education HubMusic Partnership NorthNorth Tyneside Music Education HubGateshead and South Tyneside Music Education HubNew Writing NorthRedcar & Cleveland Borough CouncilTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsNovember ClubNorth Music TrustBallet Lorent LimitedThe ForgeNational Youth Choirs of Great BritainDance CityNorthern Stage (Theatrical Productions) LtdTIN ArtsThe Maltings Berwick Trust LimitedHelix Arts LtdBaltic Flour Mills Visual Arts TrustMiddlesbrough Town HallAssociation for Cultural EnterprisesStockton International Riverside FestivalGem ArtsTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsNorth East Theatre Trust LtdThe Customs HouseBloodaxe Books LtdTheatre HullabalooWoodhorn Charitable TrustThe Lawnmowers Independent Theatre CompanyGenerator North EastAmber Film & Photography CollectiveSeven Stories, The National Centre for Children's BooksVane Contemporary Art Limiteda-n The Artists Information CompanyDurham County CouncilQueen's Hall ArtsSunderland CultureUnfolding TheatreThe NewBridge ProjectTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsWorkplace FoundationInpress LtdStockton Borough Council Tees Valley Museum GroupArts&HeritageBeamish MuseumTeesside UniversityNorthern PrintTyneside CinemaBerwick Film & Media Arts FestivalOpen Clasp Theatre CompanyStockton Arts Centre LtdThe Bowes MuseumUmar ButtJamie TansleyThe Auxiliary Project SpaceDJAZZ - Durham City Jazz FestivalSouthpaw Dance CompanyLisette Rebecca AutonNadia IftkharKris JohnsonDavid LisserVivien WoodLydia BricklandMichael John HeatleyJade ByrneNational Youth Choirs of Great BritainFestival of ThriftSouth Tyneside CouncilNew Prospects Association LimitedHartlepool Borough CouncilMichael EvansCurious Arts LtdKatie DohertyMiddlesbrough CouncilLittle CogMake & Mend CompanyNorth Tyneside CouncilSunderland MAC TrustPrimate Productions LtdPatrick NgabonzizaAmy LordRachael WalshLittle Inventors Worldwide LtdSophie BuxtonBenedict WellstoodMBC Arts WellbeingKate HunterGillie KleimanTracksSouthpaw Dance CompanyRosa PostlethwaiteAmanda OgdenRebecca Glendenning-LaycockElizabeth Jane KlotzChanging RelationsBeacon Films CICMiddlesbrough Mela AssociationHarambee Pasadia CICKatherina RadevaChristopher FolwellTatwood PuppetsBillingham International Folklore Festival of World DanceAlistair McDonaldNewcastle Asian Arts and MusicHannah ThompsonDora FrankelLaura HarringtonAction for ChildrenThe Middlesbrough Art WeekenderLet's CircusHannah MurphyThe Empty SpacePaul MillerDurham County Council Arts Programmes TeamEliot Smith CompanyAlphabetti TheatreTwo Destination LanguageWesley StephensonPineapple BlackSheila GraberCOMMONRegeneration NE CICMartin HyltonWorkie Ticket Theatre CICNorfolk Street Arts Community Interest CompanyAidan MoesbyStellar ProjectsThoughtful Planet 3William SteeleCameron John SharpTeesside UniversityZoe MurtaghMiranda TufnellUshaw CollegeChristina CastlingNewcastle City Council CultureTony Hopkins Entertainments LtdNTC Touring Theatre Company LtdLindsay DuncansonNorthumbria UniversityJulian GermainMortal FoolsOpera SunderlandDurham UniversityJake JarrattElizabeth Jane KlotzfanSHENLydia BricklandScott TurnbullTusk MusicMad Alice Theatre CompanyPayal RamchandaniChris HornsbySunderland City CouncilTim ShawBecci SharrockNorth Music TrustCharlie BramleyCreative Spaces North East C.I.C.COMMONElysium Theatre CompanyThe Creative Seed CICCurious Monkey LtdAbdulrahman Abu - ZaydDAVE GRAYAllan HughesDebra CareyIzaak GledhillHexham Book FestivalMoving Art ManagementCap-a-PieAlys Northblimey!Juliana MensahHarriet GhostTransitions17Sabina SallisConversations in PaintingFaye MacCalmanCaroline CollingeRobert GrahamHenry Amoschristopher fallowMichelle BaylyLeah MillarNell CatchpoleMelanie RashbrookeSlugtownHartlepool Wintertide FestivalEmma DunnGreyscale Theatre CompanyD6 Culture LtdNorth East Theatre Trust LtdMichael MulvihillTeesside UniversityCat RobeyCatherine BertolaSouth Tyneside CouncilHead of Steam - Darlington Railway MuseumMatt JamieBethan KitchenWoodhorn Charitable TrustSouth Tyneside CouncilFaculty of Arts, Design and Creative IndustriesJazz North East LtdSimon WestEliot Smith CompanyChalkTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsDurham UniversityVindolanda TrustMortal FoolsMiddlesbrough Council Cultural ServicesGary WilkinsonNewcastle Gateshead InitiativeDominic Nelson-AshleyMartha WheatleySkimstone ArtsLuca RutherfordSurface Area Dance Theatre CICKerrin TatmanHannah ThompsonGateway StudiosLiberdade community development trustNexusMathieu Geffréidentity on tyneShane Wreford-SinnottMichaela WetherellSteve ByronMi Viejo Fruta LtdIndependent SunderlandNew Writing NorthTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsNovember ClubNorth Music TrustBallet Lorent LimitedThe ForgeNational Youth Choirs of Great BritainDance CityNorthern Stage (Theatrical Productions) LtdTIN ArtsThe Maltings Berwick Trust LimitedHelix Arts LtdBaltic Flour Mills Visual Arts TrustMiddlesbrough Town HallAssociation for Cultural EnterprisesStockton International Riverside FestivalGem ArtsTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsNorth East Theatre Trust LtdThe Customs HouseBloodaxe Books LtdTheatre HullabalooWoodhorn Charitable TrustThe Lawnmowers Independent Theatre CompanyGenerator North EastAmber Film & Photography CollectiveSeven Stories, The National Centre for Children's BooksVane Contemporary Art Limiteda-n The Artists Information CompanyDurham County CouncilQueen's Hall ArtsSunderland CultureUnfolding TheatreThe NewBridge ProjectTyne & Wear Archives & MuseumsWorkplace FoundationInpress LtdStockton Borough Council Tees Valley Museum GroupArts&HeritageBeamish MuseumTeesside UniversityNorthern PrintTyneside CinemaBerwick Film & Media Arts FestivalOpen Clasp Theatre CompanyStockton Arts Centre LtdThe Bowes Museum

Gambling

Stephen Flynn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a mandatory levy on gambling firms to fund gambling addiction treatment, education and research.

Helen Whately: The Gambling Commission requires all operators licensed under the Gambling Act 2005 to make a contribution towards the research, prevention and treatment of gambling-related harm. Most operators donate to GambleAware, a charity which commissions dedicated support for problem gamblers, as well as research and awareness-raising on gambling-related harm. For the 2018-19 financial year, operators donated £9.6bn to GambleAware, and industry body the Betting and Gaming Council estimates that operators gave a further £9.7m to other charities. For that same financial year, the gambling sector paid around £3bn to the exchequer in gambling taxes.GambleAware commission support and treatment services for those suffering through gambling problems, including the National Gambling Helpline and counselling services provided by GamCare. GambleAware commissioned services complement those of NHS England who are scaling up treatment provision for problem gambling as part of the NHS Long-term plan. This will see up to 14 new specialist clinics open in the next 5 years, 2 of which have opened already. The Health Secretary has also announced that a cross-government addiction strategy, to include gambling, will be published in 2020.In May 2018 the government published its response to the consultation on gaming machines and social responsibility measures, which made clear that if industry failed to provide the funding needed to meet current and future needs, government would consider all options, including a mandatory levy. Following this, in July 2019, five large gambling operators announced that they will increase the amount they give tenfold, from 0.1% to 1% of their gross profits over the next four years, and as part of this have committed to spend £100 million on treatment.

Betting: Children and Young People

Catherine West: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the effect of in-game betting on the development of gambling problems among children and young people.

Helen Whately: The Government is aware of concerns that entertainment products, such as some video games, could encourage gambling-like behaviour. We have committed to review the Gambling Act 2005 to make sure it is fit for the digital age, and to consider concerns about loot boxes. We will announce further details in due course.

Sculpture: Yorkshire and the Humber

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will visit Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

Nigel Adams: I have no immediate plans to visit the Yorkshire Sculpture Park but I would be very happy to consider such a visit in the future. I’d like to congratulate Yorkshire Sculpture Park and its partners on last year’s successful Yorkshire Sculpture International, which was supported by Arts Council England. I have previously visited in a personal capacity, and hope to visit again in the future to hear more about their impressive education and outreach programmes, support for contemporary sculpture, and plans for the future.

Music: South Yorkshire

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to support the South Yorkshire music industry.

Nigel Adams: The music industry is a vital part of the UK’s creative economy, contributing £5.2bn in 2018. We have taken a number of steps to support the industry UK-wide including reforming licensing; bolstering copyright protections; funding music education initiatives and addressing issues in secondary ticketing.Arts Council England (ACE) are investing in a number of music focused programmes across South Yorkshire, including Higher Rhythm in Doncaster and Sheffield’s Abbeydale Picture House which is benefitting from the Supporting Grassroots Live Music funding. ACE also supports four music hubs across the region providing opportunities for children and young people to access music education.

Sports: Homophobia

Catherine West: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to tackle homophobia in sport.

Nigel Adams: The government recognises that there is no place for homophobia or any other kind of discrimination in sport. The government’s sport strategy ‘Sporting Future’ set out our intention to encourage as many people and groups to enjoy sport as participants, spectators and in the workforce, including the LGBT community.The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport supports the work of Sport England (our national sport council) with the national governing bodies of individual sports and LGBT-focused sport organisations on anti-homophobia initiatives aimed at encouraging inclusion, for example Stonewall's Rainbow Laces Campaign.Sport England have also commissioned Pride Sports to produce an in-depth report looking at barriers to LGBT participation including volunteering, provision, and attitudes and behaviours. This will also include a comprehensive look at LGBT participation, and a report on LGBT sport infrastructure across the country. Following this Sport England will consider what further steps could be taken to support LGBT participation.

Sports: Racial Discrimination

Catherine West: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to tackle racism in sport.

Nigel Adams: The government is clear that racism has no place in sport or society at large. The sport and physical activity strategy ‘Sporting Future: A New Strategy for an Active Nation’ has diversity and inclusion at its heart. Government remains supportive of a number of anti-racism initiatives that work with sports bodies from grassroots to the elite, including Show Racism the Red Card and Kick it Out.Over the past year the government has led debates in the House of Commons on tackling racism in sport (on 22nd May 2019 and 12th July 2019), and hosted an Anti-Racism Summit in February 2019. This led to the three main English football organisations making clear commitments to tackle racism in football stadia from July 2019. The Sports Minister met with the FA last week and discussed their progress in delivering against these commitments, and will be calling in all the footballing authorities for a further update about their work on this important issue. Further to these commitments, ministers and officials continue to speak to the FA and relevant football bodies to explore what more can be done.Grassroots sport clubs receive support in tackling racism from our national sport council, Sport England, who provide free support and learning in running a club through its "Club Matters" programme.

Television: Licensing

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate she has made of the potential effect on BBC revenues of decriminalising non-payment of the licence fee.

Nigel Adams: The potential effect on BBC revenues of decriminalising licence fee evasion was considered as part of David Perry QC’s TV Licence Fee Enforcement Review in 2015.The government believes that it is right to look again at whether the criminal sanction remains appropriate for TV licence fee evasion, given ongoing concerns about whether the criminal sanction is unfair and disproportionate.

Musicians: Travel Requirements

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Home Office on the creation of a musicians passport to help enable freedom of movement for touring musicians after the UK leaves the EU.

Helen Whately: DCMS has engaged extensively with union bodies, orchestras, individual musical practitioners and cultural organisations. We understand the importance of being able to tour. We recognise that this depends on musicians and crew being able to move quickly and easily between countries, taking necessary equipment with them. The Home Office has been closely involved in our conversations. They are well informed of the needs of the cultural sector as they look to develop the UK’s future points based immigration system and as we seek to negotiate our future relationship with the EU. Recognising the depth of the UK-EU relationship, the Government has proposed that we seek to agree reciprocal mobility arrangements with the EU. These will support businesses to provide services and to move their talented people. This is reflected in the Political Declaration on our future relationship. The details will be discussed in the next phase of negotiations.

Public Libraries: Computers

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provision of computers in public libraries to enable access to public services.

Helen Whately: Local authorities in England have a statutory duty under the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 to provide a comprehensive and efficient library service. They are responsible for determining the delivery of a modern and efficient library service that meets the requirements of their communities, including the provision of access to computers with internet access. No assessment has been made by DCMS; however public libraries are continuing to provide opportunities for people to get online and to access public services.

Youth Work

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress the Government has made on its review of youth work; and if he will make a statement.

Helen Whately: In July 2019 my department commenced a review of the statutory guidance which sets out the statutory duty placed on Local Authorities to provide local youth services. Since July 2019 officials have held roundtables with the youth sector, consultations with young people, and ran a public call for evidence, which closed in December 2019. DCMS officials are currently reviewing responses to inform the next stage of the review.This government has announced it will be investing £500 million over five years through the Youth Investment Fund to increase the availability of youth services. The fund will be used to build new youth centres across the country, refurbish existing youth facilities, provide mobile facilities for harder to reach areas, and invest in the youth work profession and frontline services. Government is also funding up to £7 million through the Youth Accelerator Fund that will expand existing successful projects delivering positive activities, and address urgent needs in the youth sector by delivering extra sessions in youth clubs.

Museums and Galleries

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what his policy is on the restitution of antiquities from national museums to their country of origin.

Helen Whately: Our 15 national museums hold world-class collections in trust for the nation that are seen in their global context by over 40 million visitors each year. Decisions relating to museum collections are a matter for the trustees of each museum, who operate independently of government. UK law prevents some national museums from removing items from their collections. The two exceptions to this are human remains, under 1000 years old, and cultural property spoliated during the Nazi era. We are committed to supporting our museums in dealing confidently with all aspects of restitution. Our national development agency for museums, Arts Council England, which is sponsored by my department, is currently working to refresh existing sector guidelines on restitution for UK museums.

Young People

Steve Reed: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2019 to Question 3229 on Children and Young People, which Department will be developing the long-term vision for young people; and which Minister will have responsibility for that strategy.

Helen Whately: The Department for Culture Media and Sport is working with colleagues across Government, and with young people, to build an ambitious long-term youth offer. The Secretary of State and Minister for Civil Society are responsible for this.

Rugby: Finance

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding from the public purse has been allocated to grassroots rugby union in each of the last three years.

Nigel Adams: Through Sport England, government has invested the following in grassroots rugby union in each of the last three years:2016/17: £4.06m2017/18: £3.45m2018/19: £4.02mThese figures include investment in both the Rugby Football Union as the national governing body for the sport, together with investment in specific community rugby union projects.Over this time period, Sport England has invested a further £12.61m in multi-sport projects where rugby union is one of the sports benefitting.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Overseas Trade

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many trade advisory committees his Department has established; and who the members of each committee are.

Nigel Adams: The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has established two trade advisory committees jointly with the Department for International Trade. The members of these groups are stakeholders from various DCMS sectors and have a breadth of knowledge and experience in trade matters.

Arts

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the efficacy of existing schemes to promote the creative industries in the regions and nations of the UK.

Nigel Adams: The Creative Industries Sector Deal was launched jointly between government and industry in 2018 in order to unlock growth for creative businesses across the regions and nations of the UK. The programmes are still underway and their evaluations are ongoing.Among the Sector Deal programmes are Creative Scale-Up, which aims to increase the profitability, scalability and productivity of small creative industries businesses in three pilot regions – Greater Manchester, the West Midlands and the West of England.Others include the Creative Clusters programme - which is developing nine world class-creative clusters across the UK, from Dundee to Bristol and Cardiff to York - and the Audiences of the Futures programme, which is working at the cutting edge of tech and creativity, with projects across the nation and with partners such as the RSC in Stratford and Aardman Animations in Bristol.

Arts

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what (a) support and (b) guidance he has made available to creative businesses on preparing for the UK leaving the EU.

Nigel Adams: The UK’s creative industries are an exporting powerhouse, delivering around 12 per cent of the UK total for exports in services. The sector is one of our fastest growing, and continues to outpace wider economic growth by two to one and job creation by three to one.We are working closely with industry and across government to ensure that our sectors are fully represented and supported in the UK’s future trade agreements, and we will continue to work with them during the transition period.We want the creative industries to continue to flourish as part of a modern and ambitious global trading framework - from world-leading news coverage that reaches every corner of the globe, to life affirming arts and culture, and immersive technologies that bring people and communities together.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Iron and Steel

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of steel procured by her Department was produced in the UK, in each of the last five years.

George Eustice: This Government remains committed to supporting the UK steel industry. Defra collates information about steel spend for projects with the largest steel requirements, including origin where known. This information is published annually on GOV.UK at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/steel-public-procurement The data was first published in January 2019, with the next iteration due to be published shortly.

Floods: Insurance

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many properties in (a) Fairbourne, Gwynedd, (b) Dwyfor Meirionnydd and (c) Wales have access to affordable flood insurance through the Flood Re scheme.

Rebecca Pow: Flood Re (FR) covers the UK, including Wales. It is available through more than 85 insurance brands representing 94% of the home insurance market. FR does not deal directly with homeowners, but instead allows insurance companies to choose whether to pass the flood risk element over to them for a set, below market-cost, premium. As of 30 September 2019, there were 12,567 policies in Wales backed by FR. In Dwyfor Meirionnydd, there were 388 policies. The lowest granularity FR can provide figures for is at a constituency level so FR cannot provide a number for Fairbourne, Gwynedd.

Flood Control: South Yorkshire

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to improve flood defences in South Yorkshire following the floods in November 2019.

Rebecca Pow: Following the recent flooding in South Yorkshire, the Environment Agency (EA) have identified approximately £30 million of work on EA owned or maintained assets to return the assets to their target condition and improve the resilience of those assets against flooding. The EA have also identified an initial £50 million of work to make further new improvements works to flood defences in South Yorkshire. In addition to this and prior to the recent floods, the Environment Agency’s existing flood programme in South Yorkshire from 2020/21 to 2026/27 showed that there is a need to invest £106 million to improve flood defences in the area. Under current partnership funding rules this would generate £42 million of Grant in Aid funding from Defra and leave the remaining balance to be found from other sources. The EA is aware that £44 million has potential sources of funding identified but not yet secured, with the balance of around £19 million still to be identified. The Environment Agency is working with all the South Yorkshire Lead Flood Authorities and Sheffield City Region in a catchment wide approach to see how it can find the additional funding needed to secure a strong flood programme and recover from the November 2019 floods. The EA looks forward to strengthening these relationships as we work together to deliver increased flood resilience through engineering and nature based solutions for communities across South Yorkshire. Government is investing £2.6 billion between 2015 and 2021 to better protect the country from flooding. This will attract more than £600 million of additional investment through partnership contributions, funding over 1,000 flood defence schemes to better protect 300,000 homes by 2021. The Government are looking at current funding arrangements and an assessment of funding needs beyond 2021. We will continue to work with the EA to consider future investment needs and Government’s role in supporting the resilience of communities.

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the three most recent areas of outstanding natural beauty to be designated in the UK were; the dates of those designations; when he plans to make further designations; and if he will make a statement.

Rebecca Pow: Designation of protected landscapes is a devolved matter. The three most recent Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) designated in England are: Tamar Valley AONB in August 1995 (Cornwall and Devon), Nidderdale AONB in February 1994 (North Yorkshire) and Blackdown Hills AONB in June 1991 (Devon and Somerset). In addition, there have been variations to the boundaries of Dedham Vale AONB (Nayland-with-Wissington) in September 1991, Cotswolds AONB in December 1990; and Chilterns AONB in March 1990. As part of the 25 Year Environment Plan, the Government commissioned a Review of Designated Landscapes, led by Julian Glover – the final report was published in September 2019. The Government welcomes the review and is carefully considering its proposals, including those concerning new designations.

Food: Labelling

Tom Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will introduce legislative proposals to ban best before labels on food items.

George Eustice: The term ‘best before’ is used to indicate to consumers that the quality of the food may not be at its best after the date has expired. When used appropriately, and in line with the most recent guidance from the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), ‘best before’ helps ensure that consumers are able to make the best use of food and reduce waste.The Government supports the valuable work done by WRAP in the UK to reduce food waste, which includes providing clear, thoroughly researched, sector-specific guidance on the application of ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ dates. WRAP’s recommendations are based on a large body of evidence and their work with food businesses, retailers and consumers.

Alabama Rot

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help prevent the spread of alabama rot in dogs.

George Eustice: Cutaneous and renal glomerular vasculopathy (CRGV), which is sometimes referred to as Alabama Rot, first emerged in the UK in 2012. The Animal and Plant Health Agency has been in touch from the start with the private veterinary group investigating the syndrome. While CRGV remains rare in the UK, we are now working with this vet group to commission research to improve our understanding. Forestry England’s advice on dog health https://www.forestryengland.uk/dog-health includes a link to private veterinary advice on CRGV and other organisations such as the Kennel Club also provide advice.

Air Pollution

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which local authorities have been awarded an air quality grant for 2019 to 2020; and how much each local authority has been awarded.

Rebecca Pow: The Air Quality Grant Scheme is competitive and a total value of £2 million is available to award to successful English local authorities. The 2019 grant awards are currently under evaluation and decisions will be finalised in due course.

Prime Minister

Iran: Nuclear Power

Matt Western: To ask the Prime Minister, with reference to the oral contribution of the Prime Minister of 8 January 2020, Official Report, column 383, how many meetings he has held with his (a) French and (b) German counterparts on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in the latest period for which data is available; when those meetings took place; and what was discussed at each of those meetings.

Boris Johnson: Details of my meetings, discussions and statements on this matter are available on the gov.uk website.https://www.gov.uk/search/news-and-communications?organisations%5B%5D=prime-ministers-office-10-downing-street